Twin Angels
by 23blenders
Summary: Takes place after Uprising. Follows the characters' lives, mostly the two angels. Needs a less face-palm worthy name, but I really have no talents in the 'meaningful names' department. Have gotten rid of extraneous author's note! So even though the chapter number is still the same (for this update), there is actually a new chapter.
1. Chapter 1

**Bear with me people! I'm still trying to figure out how to use the site. Anyway, my intention with this thing is to explore the characters, and as such I will probably do things like have the internet without really going into detail as to how the internet came to skyworld. This is because the internet is not the important thing. What our angelic duo is doing is important. I hope this does not bother anyone too much. Another note, I will probably focus more on Dark Pit simply because I think he's the most interesting character of the ones I'm writing about. Oh yeah, and I'm tired of the not-so-creative name Dark Pit. I plan to rename him. And no, it won't be Kuro, I can't really get that one to stick in my mind. I'll talk about it more when I get to that chapter, it's not happening right away.**

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After the war against the Underworld Army, Dark Pit went his own way. Palutena and Viridi had both offered him a place to stay, but he turned them down. Politely. He wanted to be cocky and laugh at the offers but recognized that burning his bridges probably wasn't a good idea, and he might eventually have to take one of them up on the offer. He didn't dislike the goddesses per se, he just didn't want to be bound to anyone as a servant. Many things had changed about Dark Pit since his creation, but that wasn't one of them. He also didn't want to piss off either goddess; it's bad for the health. He'd done fine on his own before- but that was when he could fly, which is why he wanted the option available.

A few months had passed. Dark Pit didn't really have a home, even after all this time. He wandered mostly and caught or gathered his food. He didn't really want to live with humans, for a number of reasons, and he hadn't found a good, out-of-the-way place to settle. On this particular night, he simply found a small cave to sleep in after eating. It was still a little early to sleep, so he did what he did most of the time: he contemplated whatever came to mind. Tonight, he considered his situation.

Truthfully he wasn't particularly happy being constantly alone. For all that he acted like a lone wolf he had grudgingly come to admit to himself that he didn't really like being alone. So would he be satisfied when he did find that place to settle down? He was startled to realize that he'd somehow officially come to the conclusion that he wanted something different than his current goal. He felt more like this conclusion was a long time coming than a split second decision now. Ok, so what to do? Dark Pit needed a new plan. He decided to consider the goddess' offers again.

He could go to Skyworld. Palutena is a motherly type and would love the idea of taking in the stray angel, especially the lost dark half of her precious Pit. Pit would probably love it too. But he wanted to avoid Pit if he could. He had brought Pit nothing but trouble and grief since his creation. For god's sake, first he tried to kill Pit. Then when he tried to help Pit, he managed to get his twin hurt more badly than he ever managed to back when he was actually trying to kill him! He still had nightmares about that. Basically, Dark Pit is ashamed by his initial behavior towards Pit and horrified at the consequences of their association later. Especially when he considered how Pit had never held any ill will towards him, had wanted to stop fighting as soon as he discovered that Dark Pit wasn't helping the enemy. Then Pit set his precious wings on fire to rescue his doppelganger. Although he was relieved that Pit didn't hate him he still felt awkward around the angel and didn't feel ready to face him yet.

He feels less inclined to go to Viridi. She can be downright nasty and frankly he doesn't want to deal with that. Oh, she doesn't think she's being moody and irrational, but what moody, irrational person does? She intends to be nice but has a short fuse. This doesn't mean she's not worth hanging around, he just doesn't want to do so 24/7. He'd actually spoken to her a few times since the war ended. Being the goddess of Nature, she doesn't find it difficult to locate Dark Pit, since he's tied to the ground; she enjoys chatting with him from time to time. He'd gathered that she was also remaining on reasonably good terms with Palutena and Pit as well- with some disagreements regarding the humans, of course. She is a good friend, worth talking to. Although she needs to be nudged when it comes to her opinions, since he has no desire to see humanity wiped out. He doesn't want to live with humans, but they are interesting and Dark Pit does have some morals, thank you very much.

By the time he had finished considering these options he was tired, time to go to sleep. He hadn't made any decisions, neither option sounded particularly appealing to him in his state. He'd have to come up with something different, tomorrow preferably. He didn't want to waste time on a goal he no longer desired.

**This first chapter is more to give my impression of the general state of things, including my ideas of DP's opinions. I say 'my ideas' because there are numerous interpretations of his (and everyone else's) personality/behavior. This is mine.**


	2. Stubborn

**One day I do hope to come up with a different, not generic uncreative title. I'm not going to pretend I have any strengths there.**

**Duke Serkol: I noted that in Dark Pit's chapter, Pit asked if Dark Pit's lack of affiliation with Medusa meant he didn't have to fight him. That tells me he didn't really want to fight DP if it was possible to avoid it. It was mostly Palutena, and Pit doesn't really question Palutena. I think that he will after spending some time around DP though. We'll see. As for how he feels about Pit I think that repaid or not he'd still have to deal with the fact that Pit gave up his wings without a second thought for DP. Things like that aren't so simple. DP's personality isn't simple either, one of the reasons I'm writing this. I will try to watch my tense usage, thank you for the advice. Do not be surprised if it takes me awhile to catch on, writing has never really been my forte. At this point I'm hoping to write something that isn't crap.**

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The next afternoon Dark Pit still hadn't moved. He hadn't thought of any new plans yet and was getting frustrated. Viridi noticed his unusual behavior, as he normally left early. She decided to check up on him, since she was concerned. She spoke to him before showing up, out of courtesy. Sort of like knocking before opening the door.

"Hey, Pittoo? You ok down there?" she asked.

Dark Pit looked up from his previous blank stare. "Do we have to go through this every time? My name's Dark Pit. And what do you mean am I ok?"

She ignored the first question, like always. "You haven't moved yet today."

He raised an eyebrow. "What, are you spying on me or something?"

"In a sense. When you're walking on my earth I can tell. And you're my friend so I'm somewhat attuned to you and I keep tabs on you. Also, you haven't really changed your routine, so this is out of the ordinary."

He frowned, not responding. Now that Viridi mentioned 'keeping tabs' on him, he couldn't help but wonder why Palutena and Pit didn't show up. Like, not even once. Certainly Pit would bother his goddess to no end for the power of flight if he really wanted to see Dark Pit. Before he could stop himself he began to question whether Pit actually cared about him. Before he could follow that train of thought however, the goddess of nature strode into his cave like she owned the place. Which, he reflected, she kind of did.

"What, are you mad that I keep an eye on you? I don't exactly watch you every second but I'd have to concentrate on completely forgetting about you for a long time to actually lose you since you are restricted to walking and can't move very quickly." As Viridi said this, she sat down on a large rock that had inexplicably materialized, facing the angel.

Dark Pit shook his head. "No, it just occurred to me that Palutena and… that she hasn't checked on me. Ever, really." He hadn't intended to actually tell Viridi what he'd been thinking of, it just slipped out. At least he'd caught himself before he got the full thought out, and kept from mentioning Pit. It's not that he wants to lie to his friend, he just automatically keeps checks on how much personal information he gives to any individual. This includes what exactly he spends his time thinking about. Of course Dark Pit doesn't know he's specifically doing that, he just thinks he doesn't feel like talking about his thoughts and feelings.

Viridi is a lot more intuitive than Dark Pit realizes (she only looks like a child, she is actually much older) and caught the slip, guessing easily what he was originally going to say. She chose to let it go for now though to pursue her original question.

"Is that why you haven't moved yet today?" She knew that this was silly thing to ask, since he'd said that his previous thought had just now occurred to him. But it steered the topic towards her question while acknowledging his statement.

He was reluctant to answer, since he hadn't decided what he wanted to do yet. He likes to make his own decisions, and telling Viridi would definitely get her involved. He decided to attempt to lie. "Naw, I'm just taking a break."

She heard his hesitation and pounced on the lie. "I'm not buying it. And I'm not leaving until I get a satisfactory answer"

He glared at her. "Fine. I'm dissatisfied with my current existence and I'm not sure where I want to go from here."

"Dissatisfied? In what way? Perhaps I can help."

Dark Pit frowned momentarily. This was what he'd been hoping to avoid.

"I saw that. Don't be stupid, you have clearly been unsuccessful this whole morning at resolving whatever problems you're having. Maybe I can shed a different light on the issue. Talk!" She commanded.

He sighed. "Ok, fine. Long story short I want to find a place to live. But I don't want to be completely isolated. I also don't really want to live near humans, I'm sure you can appreciate that. But this leaves me with few options." He sighed again. "I suppose I might just have to make do with the humans after all." He scowled at the idea.

Viridi furrowed her eyebrows. "I'm assuming you've already tossed out the idea of living with me or Palutena." Dark Pit's silence confirmed this. "I won't make it awkward and ask why not me, but I want to know why you won't live in Skyworld? Either of us has got to be better than random humans you don't know." He just shrugged, not looking at her. "And are you even considering Pit?" He looked up at her. "As far as I can tell, Pit's not interested in my whereabouts." He had spoken the thought that had been growing in the back of his mind ever since Viridi had arrived. There was a moment of silence.

"You're a moron." Viridi informed Dark Pit. "Well, I suppose they have left you alone for a long time" she mused. He snorted in response. "Oh stop it. Pit has wanted you up in Skyworld with him from day one." He raised an eyebrow skeptically. She continued "He and Palutena don't contact you because you made it clear you wanted to be left alone. But you were wrong earlier when you said that they don't check on you." "I didn't say anything about Pit checking on me, just Palutena." "Bullshit. You were about to and don't try to tell me you weren't thinking it."

He paused, unable to refute this. "How exactly are they 'checking' on me? I've never seen either of them" he asked, shifting the focus of the discussion from himself.

"Well, through me. They know I visit you and they ask about you."

He mulled over this for a moment, then decided it didn't sound like she was telling them enough to offend him. He also didn't really feel like arguing that point right now. "Well, I don't really see how this is solving my problem. So if you'll leave me alone, I have some work to do" he said, knowing she wouldn't listen.

Viridi thought for a minute. Then she said "I said what I can. I think you should go to Skyworld. I think you would be happier there than here. Although you won't admit it I think you'd like to be with Pit. He'd like you around, and he really deserves better than your neglect. After all, you are each other's only blood kin, after a fashion. You really shouldn't shut him out." She paused, thinking, then continued. "For that matter, maybe he can convince you to go to Skyworld. Or he could help you with a different solution."

He saw where this was going. "No. No Viridi, do not send him here."

Viridi narrowed her eyes. "Stubborn as ever, aren't you? Well so am I. And like it or not, so is Pit. I think I will, in fact, send him to you." And with that promise, she stood and disappeared in a whirl of leaves and petals.

Dark Pit swore. He immediately stood, gathered his few possessions, and left as well, determined to get as far from his current location as possible in hopes that Pit might not be able to locate him.

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**Two chapters in and I've already learned quite a lot about writing stories. They really don't teach this in school very well. If at all. They teach you how to write essays that nobody wants to read. Anyway, this is already turning out very differently than I imagined when I was still trying to convince myself to start this. I am not at all confident in my ability to write something that is worth reading to the end (like I said earlier, writing has never been one of my strengths) but I'm gonna give it a good fighting try. Wish me luck.**


	3. Family

**I own nothing. Forgot to mention that before. Kid Icarus and its characters belong to Nintendo. Get ready for another chapter of talking! Sorry if this is boring you but it has to be done. And this isn't really going to be an actiony story, so if that's what you were expecting you're gonna be disappointed. This chapter gave me trouble, I couldn't plan it out at all. I'm reasonably pleased though, even though it took longer than I expected. Not to mention real life got in my way. I had various springtime related activities to perform. My mom and I planted a crapload of onions the other day. I'm not sure why anyone needs that many onions. We don't even ever use shallots! I also sprained my hand somehow. This happened before the onions, they made it worse.**

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Dark Pit was walking quickly through the forest. An hour had passed since he'd left after speaking with Viridi, and he was still irritated at her nosiness. He had no doubt that she'd gone straight to Skyworld, so he expected Pit to fly in any moment now. He hoped to avoid Pit by not staying still and losing him. Then Pit's power of flight would be used up, and he'd have to give up.

A sound registered in his awareness, a kind of rumbling. Within a minute or two it had gotten much closer and suddenly Dark Pit heard cracking and rustling, then the noise came to a stop. He'd stopped walking while trying to puzzle out the noise. When it stopped he started moving again, since it sounded close. Then he heard a voice he recognized. The voice cleared up his confusion, while also annoying him because it meant his previous plan wasn't going to work.

"Ok you two, stay here until I get back. Phos, stop chewing on the harness. Chew on this apple instead. You know what, I'm sticking the harness over here where you can't reach it. Take that! Now, behave!".

And with that, he heard what he presumed was Pit walking through the underbrush, in his direction. After a few steps, Pit stopped, grumbled a little, and yelled "Pittoo, I know you're here! Not entirely sure how, but I can tell. You can't hide from me."

He stopped, and realized that Pit was right. He had a sort of awareness of Pit's presence. More like, a feeling he hadn't realized he'd always had was intensified with Pit's close proximity. Well, their lives were connected, he supposed he wasn't surprised to find that he could feel where Pit was. And vice versa.

He knew when he was defeated.

"Fine, I'm over here. Shut up with that name. You came in the Lightning Chariot?" He started moving towards Pit.

"Oh yeah, it's really nifty. Not as good as flying myself, but I can go places without Lady Palutena having to take me and without a time limit. You may as well just come to the chariot, there's not a lot of places to sit here."

He didn't respond, and eventually came out of the trees into a small clearing. The lightning chariot was sitting in the middle, and the unicorns Phos and Lux were unharnessed from it. Phos was grazing in the small amount of grass and Pit petting Lux, who was finishing off an apple. When Dark Pit moved into the clearing, Pit turned and his face lit up. The next thing he knew, Pit had raced over and thrown his arms around his twin, hugging him tightly and saying "You have no idea how happy I am to see you."

Dark Pit was frozen in shock for a moment, then started trying to pry Pit off.

"Ok, ok that's enough."

Pit let go and took a step back, smiling.

"What was that for?" Dark Pit demanded, folding his arms.

"I already told you. I'm happy to see you." Pit responded, tilting his head slightly and generally looking like the happiest person alive.

"What, so you have to assault me? And why'd you have to come bother me, anyway?"

Pit's smile faded, he was disturbed both by Dark Pit's words and by his angry expression.

"Do you really not want to see me that badly?" he asked in a small voice. Dark Pit's irritation evaporated instantly, replaced by guilt.

"No, no. I just…" He fumbled for words, suddenly wondering exactly why he'd been so desperate to escape Pit. He knew he didn't dislike Pit, and of course Pit's well being was important to him due to their connected lives. He still felt awkward about their past interactions, but not visiting Pit and actively trying to escape him were two different things.

Oh yeah. Viridi had sent Pit here to interfere with his plans. Or lack thereof.

"…You're here because Viridi sent you. And Viridi was just annoying me not that long ago."

Pit's expression turned to concern. He's like an open book, ya know. At least if he feels there's no reason to hide his emotions. He gestured towards the chariot. "Let's go talk." He said simply.

They climbed into the chariot and sat next to each other.

"So what have you been up to?" Dark Pit asked before Pit could steer the conversation. Pit narrowed his eyes at his twin, indicating that he wasn't fooled. But he went along with it.

"There was some cleanup to deal with in Skyworld, since it was neglected and rearranged for three years."

"Yeah, I sort of remember seeing that. When I was there though, I had more important things to think about. So is it back to normal?" he asked hastily to keep Pit from thinking about Dark Pit's brief time in Skyworld.

"Yeah, mostly. I helped with that then I worked with the unicorns and trained with the centurions. The unicorns have taken most of my attention though. Yeah, my life isn't exactly exciting at the moment."

"What work did you have to do with the unicorns?" Dark Pit wondered aloud.

"Well, I wanted to be able to actually use the chariot. I used it before, but had no real control over the unicorns and the chariot. I had to get to know them, then we had to get used to working together. When I started, I would never have been able to let them loose like this." Pit said, waving his arm in the direction of the grazing unicorns.

"I did wonder about that." Dark Pit admitted, glancing at them.

"Ok, let's stop beating around the bush. What about you?" Pit asked, directing a stubborn look at the dark angel. He shrugged, not looking at Pit

"I've been wandering, looking for a place to stay" he said evasively. Pit rolled his eyes impatiently.

"Ok, I knew that. I do stay in touch with Viridi, you know. Speaking of which, how 'bout we talk about your conversation earlier? She told me everything. You want a home." Dark Pit glared angrily in front of him until the last statement. Then he looked at Pit, who's face showed only concern now.

"Did you have any ideas where you want to go?" He looked down again and shook his head.

"You know you can always stay with me, right?" He turned his head away at this. Pit looked hurt, although Dark Pit couldn't see this.

"I don't understand. Are you mad at me? Did I do something?" Pit asked, his voice pleading. Dark Pit looked at the light angel and responded instantly, without thinking.

"What? Of course not. Why would you think that?"

Unexpectedly, Pit looked angry.

"Why? Why would I think that? Once my life- and thus yours- was out of immediate danger you pretty much said 'bye' and left. I hoped if I gave you your space you'd come back, because I thought we were friends, at least. Lady Palutena and Viridi agreed that that would work best. I waited, asking Viridi about you every time I saw her. I wanted to make sure you were ok. I waited longer. You never visited or sent any word. Finally Viridi comes to me with the news that you want company only to find that you're doing all you can to avoid me. Apparently, I'm so horrible that spending any time with me is a huge sacrifice for you. What else am I supposed to think?!"

Dark Pit stared at Pit, speechless. So did the unicorns, disturbed by Pit's shouts, before returning to their grazing. He hadn't realized that the angel was really capable of harboring such anger, because he was normally so happy. He'd spent so much energy on keeping himself from feeling uncomfortable that it never occurred to him that Pit might get the wrong idea, and that he would blame himself for something that was all Dark Pit's fault. He had to say something, so he spoke the simple truth:

"I never meant to hurt you."

Pit stared carefully at Dark Pit for several long moments. Then he closed his eyes and sighed, and in a soft voice asked "So then, why?" Dark Pit faced forward in his seat and was silent for a minute.

Finally, he said "I've cost you so much, like your wings…" Pit was astonished.

"Really? That's it?" He turned his head away.

After a moment, Pit said "Hey. I'm going to tell you something. You're going to listen to it, because I'm only saying it once." He paused. "My face is not over there." When Dark Pit didn't move, Pit reached out and grabbed his twin's shoulders and turned him.

"Listen to me."

Dark Pit said nothing, but maintained eye contact.

"You're worth it. You're worth every single burned feather. You're more important than my wings. I'd do it again." Dark Pit was stunned.

"But why? I was a complete asshole before that. I kept trying to kill you, and I only helped you once I realized that killing you would mean my own death. Why am I important to you?" Pit leaned back, considering.

"Am I right in assuming that you wouldn't kill me now, even if our lives weren't connected?" Dark Pit nodded.

"Then the simple answer to one portion is that you've changed. You're not an asshole anymore. Not much, anyway." Pit amended, smirking. Dark Pit grinned a little in response.

"You also gave up your wings for me, in a way. Not quite so dramatically, but still. You can't fly now any more than I can."

"But I didn't intend to do that. It just kind of happened." Dark Pit protested.

"I suppose I shouldn't assume." Pit mused, then asked "Would you have chosen it if you could?"

"Absolutely" was the immediate answer. Pit nodded.

"The most important part is that you're my family. My only blood relative."

Seeing Dark Pit's unsure expression, he added "You can't deny that we are very closely related, even if it's not normal. Everyone calls us twins. I call us twins. Your unusual origin doesn't make it any less valid. We're like brothers."

Dark Pit looked down, considering the concept. "Brothers…"

"I wouldn't give up my wings for just anyone, you know. I can't even use the power of flight without them."

Dark Pit absorbed this, still considering. Pit sighed.

"Of course, you don't have to feel the same. To my mind, no matter how you feel about me you're still family. I'll always care about you whether or not you or I like it."

At this Dark Pit looked up at him, shaking his head.

"Of course I care about you. How could I do anything otherwise after you saved me? In the beginning you were at the top of my hit list just because I was confused." He cringed, then went on.

"Once I found our connection, I set out to keep you alive. After you burned your wings to save me, it got personal. I mean, you technically had no reason to do that. I wanted to save you, I didn't want you to die. I guess I decided then that you _had_ to be my family. Who else would give up everything for someone who was so horrible to them?" He looked a little surprised. "I literally just came up with that now, but it _feels_ true. I think I just didn't realize it before."

Both boys were silent for several minutes, lost in their own thoughts. Finally Pit looked up at Dark Pit and said "So, brothers then?"

Dark Pit looked at Pit, smiling and replied "Yeah. Why not? Brothers."

Pit once again threw his arms around the dark angel. Dark Pit laughed, then started trying to pry Pit off while saying "Ok, just because I've agreed that you're my brother doesn't mean I'm gonna let you get away with a lot of this nonsense!"

He lightly slapped Pit on the head.

"Is that a challenge?" Pit asked while letting go, then countered by poking Dark Pit's shoulder.

"What?! No! It's a warning!" Dark Pit shoved Pit back, and Pit punched him.

"Too late! I've already taken it as a challenge!"

By this point they were both flat out fighting, all the while grinning. Dark Pit fell out of the chariot and the unicorns ambled over and tried to eat his hair. "I'm not food!" he cried, waving his arms at them. Pit got out and shooed them away. Then he turned hopefully to Dark Pit, who had just stood up, and said "So, you wanna come back home with me?"

He hesitated for a fraction of a second, then grinned and said "Sure. I liked riding in the Lightning Chariot before."

Pit grinned back and said "Let's get going then."

The twins got the unicorns in the harness and climbed back into the chariot. Pit took the reins and they left the forest behind.

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**So I've always been somewhat irritated that other fanfic writers tend to award the Lightning Chariot to Phosphora. Pit worked hard for that thing! And Phosphora can fly without it. Pit has much more use for it than she does. And again, he earned it.**

**I've always imagined that Pit would be a fairly affectionate person, and not make it a secret that he cares about someone in any capacity. Hence the hugging. Unless it were a crush, I think he'd act embarrassed then. But my point here, although I think I made it quite obvious, is that in my mind people hugging each other can, but does not always, mean romantic attraction. Pit does not feel romantically attracted to Dark Pit here, and vice versa. They will not ever in my story, they are siblings to my mind. And this will come up eventually, the word love can also be applied in a non romantic sense. People here tend to forget this a lot.**

**Thank you to Sleepwalker48 for allowing me to ramble and bounce ideas around. I've enjoyed doing so immensely.**

**I'm working on a cover for the story! It's taking freakin forever, but I'm doing it!**


	4. Home, for now

Having arrived in Skyworld, the twins set to work putting the chariot and unicorns away. Pit had to instruct the other, since he wasn't familiar with taking care of unicorns. Dark Pit was also partly helping because he didn't really want to come across Palutena alone. He'd had more than enough of talking about his feelings for the day, and he suspected she wouldn't be able to resist prying. Hopefully with Pit there, such a conversation wouldn't happen. By the time they finished, the two were getting hungry. Dark Pit was looking forward to eating something other than what he could gather or hunt. They had a few options. They could eat with Palutena, or take some food to wherever they wanted. Pit suggested that they should eat with the goddess, since there were a few things to discuss. May as well get it done over dinner. Obviously, she knew all about Pit chasing down Dark Pit and probably knew he had returned with Pit.

The two angels stopped by Pit's room, where Pit grabbed some clothes. (I've decided for now that Pit has several sets of the same sort of clothes, so yeah. That's what we're working with here. I am not creative in this manner.) He shoved these clothes into Dark Pit's arms and pointed him towards a hot spring, informing him that his months of living in the wilderness hadn't done much for his hygiene. He didn't say this nearly as nicely as I just did, having compared the smell to that of a wet goat. Dark Pit complained about the white clothes until Pit threw a pillow at his head, then loudly lamented having allowed his pillow to touch Dark Pit in his unwashed state. Eventually Dark Pit returned, clean and dressed like his twin (he kept his purple clasp and his belt). He stowed his old clothes (and his sandals and gauntlets, he likes being barefoot) in a corner of the room for the time being and griped about being dressed like Pit. Pit, for his part, sniggered every time Dark Pit threw a dirty look at his borrowed clothes. They headed out to get dinner, which Pit had spoken to his goddess about while Dark Pit was otherwise occupied.

When Pit and Palutena ate together, they ate in a dining room. As for the particular food, they could either take some of the food that was made for the centurions or make some of their own. Palutena had chosen to make dinner on this particular evening (she likes to be domestic sometimes), so when the boys arrived dinner was nearly done.

Palutena turned around at the sound of the angels entering the room, and immediately stifled her laughter at Dark Pit's irritated expression. Pit still had a smirk on his face.

"Pittoo! It's good to see you again. You seem…I was going to say you seem well but actually, you seem annoyed."

Dark Pit had scowled at being called Pittoo on top of his existing irritation at his clothing situation. "Good catch there" he said sarcastically."As it happens, I am incredibly annoyed. The clothes can't be helped at the moment, but you can help by not calling me by that aggravating nickname."

He shot a glance at Pit, who was still smirking and had snorted at the last comment, and elbowed him in the stomach. Pit just snorted again. Watching Dark Pit be annoyed is _really_ funny.

Palutena couldn't help but smile at the exchange. "Shall I call you Dark Pit, then? To be honest, it kind of feels weird. Like it's not a proper name."

Dark Pit shrugged. "Well, it's mine. And it's much better than Pittoo. So yeah, call me Dark Pit."

Pit frowned. "She's right you know. It's especially weird for me to say. I'm essentially calling you by my own name."

But Dark Pit had had enough conversation about his name."So, dinner." He said, changing the subject. The other two let it drop, and in a short time everyone was settled at the table and ate. They chatted during the meal, then after everyone was finished they began to speak about Dark Pit's situation.

"So are you here to stay, Dark Pit? Or are you just visiting?" Palutena asked.

He looked at her, and Pit looked at him. "Well, that depends. Are you offering to let me stay here?"

"If you'd like to try it out, yes" she replied.

"What'll I do while I'm here? I'm not just going to admire the clouds all day" he stated.

"You'd assist Pit in training the centurions, and anything else he's tasked with. To start, anyway. He does have some free time though. Pit's been working with the unicorns in recent months during his free time."

"Could I use the chariot?"

"Why are you asking me that? Ask Pit. He's the one that did all the work."

Dark Pit turned to Pit, who was already answering. "Sure! I gotta show you how to handle the unicorns first, I'm not letting them out of my sight until I know you won't lose them."

He grinned. "Thanks. You were right, it's not as good as flying myself, but it's still cool. What else do you do around here?"

Pit scratched his head. "You'd be surprised how much time training the centurions takes. They get out of practice easily, and many are lazy."

"Hm. Seems kind of… boring."

"Peacetime generally is" Palutena cut in. "But there are still pockets of leaderless underworld troops going around, and sometimes souls in the underworld clump together on their own and create monsters. They apparently don't need a god to do this, although the results are unpredictable. When they show up, I naturally send Pit to deal with it."

"Which I do quite well, if I do say so myself" Pit boasted.

"You're so modest, Pit." commented his twin.

"I know. You don't need to tell me. But please, do go on." Pit encouraged.

"Naw, I think your ego is inflated enough for today."

Palutena chuckled at them. "I'm already looking forward to your time here, Dark Pit."

He grinned. "Ok, so then I guess that's settled for now. I'll try it out for awhile."

Pit turned to him and beamed happily. Palutena also smiled at him.

"I'm happy to hear that Pittoo- I mean Dark Pit!" She laughed when Dark Pit glared at her. "I'm sorry! It's going to take some time to get used to." Pit was smirking again.

"Alright, alright" Dark Pit spoke over the laughter. "Where am I sleeping?"

The goddess stopped laughing and thought for a moment. "If you don't mind being near Pit, there's a room next to his that is set up as a bedroom. You can take that one."

Dark Pit nodded, and Pit looked absolutely delighted at the prospect of having his brother close by.

"What about my clothes? I'd really like to stick with my old look."

She laughed again, and replied "I will take care of that. You'll have to continue to borrow from Pit for the moment. But really, you don't look bad like that."

She had added her last comment to see Dark Pit get annoyed, and was rewarded. He crossed his arms, a picture of stubbornness.

"We are not discussing this."

She smirked (Yes, Palutena can smirk) and Dark Pit got even more annoyed, realizing that he had done exactly what she had wanted.

"Alright, alright. Is there anything else you want to know?" she asked him. He thought about it, then shook his head.

Let's get you set up then" said Pit. Dark Pit agreed, then after a moment of hesitation turned to the goddess.

"Thank you" he said, "for letting me stay."

Palutena replied "You're very welcome. I think you being here will be a good thing for all of us. Have a good night." She turned to Pit and said "You too, Pit." Pit returned the sentiment. The twins returned to Pit's room.

"Alright then, you can take your clothes out of my room. I'm not touching them. God knows when they were last washed. Eh, I don't know if the bed in your room has blankets or not. Let's go check."

Dark Pit grabbed the bundle and followed Pit out to the hall, then to the next room. It looked about the same size as Pit's, with a bed and other various bits of furniture. Pit was over by the bed, and announced that it had blankets on it so they didn't need to go find any. Pit turned around and looked at the clothes in Dark Pit's arms, then pointed to a laundry basket in a corner that he hadn't noticed yet. At the hint, he dropped them in. Pit explained that laundry was something that was tasked to a group of centurions, as it wouldn't work too well to have everyone try to do their own laundry. The group that did the laundry knew how to do it well, whereas the rest… well… didn't. Everything went much more smoothly this way. Of course, this meant that the centurions that made up this particular group were even worse at fighting than the rest, since it was agreed that there wasn't much point in dividing their energies by really trying to train them to fight. It was a similar story with cooking for the centurions and other such tasks.

Pit went back to his room briefly, returning with pajamas – a non-offensive navy blue – and handed them to his twin, saying good night. Dark Pit put them on (tossing the borrowed clothes from earlier into the corner, having already forgotten about the laundry basket) and got into his bed. He hadn't ever really slept in a bed, so this was a new thing. While it was comfortable though, he couldn't get to sleep. He was tossing and turning long past when Pit fell asleep, and finally he got out of bed and settled down on the floor against a wall, wrapping his wings around himself like he always did. He fell asleep very quickly after that.

* * *

**If the writing flowed oddly, it's because I wrote it, then tried to alter how I did the dialogue. This is the result, and isn't my best. And I tried to have them do stuff without my detailing the dialogue. I don't know how well that came out.**


	5. Exploration

**Sorry about the delay. There's been drama in my life, including but not limited to the fridge breaking. _Again_. I've also been sick. Lovely. And the touchpad on my laptop stopped working entirely. The thing's four years old and I don't deal with crap like sending computers away to be repaired. So I asked the almighty wizard Google for advice and found a few suggestions, one of which involved dissecting the laptop. I figured the touchpad can't get any worse than its current non-functional state, so I went along with it. It didn't work, but I managed to do this without breaking anything and I know a little more about the inner workings of my computer now, so I consider the whole venture a small victory.**

**With the story. I wondered how the population of Skyworld gets its food. I just don't see Palutena magicking it out of nowhere all the time. Plus the anime does show gardens. So I'm going with there's some farming going on... in the sky! Yay! I seem to go against the grain (no pun intended) in that I feel that being the goddess of nature does not automatically make Viridi a vegetarian. Unless there's canon information regarding this, I'm sticking with this view, although I've only touched on it here and I don't plan to dwell on this.**

**Anyway. Pit and DP went to sleep at the end of the last chapter. Two weeks later, the next morning has finally arrived!**

* * *

"There's a bed for a reason you know…"

Dark Pit woke to Pit's amused voice the morning after he arrived. He groaned and looked up to find Pit leaning against the doorframe with his arms crossed, already dressed for the day.

"You ever heard of knocking?"

"I might have. A long time ago." he said, waving his hand dismissively.

"Well, go away. I need to get changed." Pit rolled his eyes and left, closing the door. Dark Pit heard him go back to his own room. Good, he needed Pit so he wouldn't get lost. On reflection, he realized that Pit was probably hanging back for that purpose. Once he finished (still those damned white clothes), he left his room and closed the door. He proceeded to knock on Pit's door.

"You see what I did just now?" asked Dark Pit when Pit opened the door. "That would be called knocking. One does this to alert the occupant of the room to their presence and/or ask permission to enter the room. You do this to respect the other's privacy. I realize this is a foreign notion to you, Pit."

Pit raised an eyebrow. "It's so good that I have you here now to teach me about manners in such a professional-sounding way. Whatever did I do without you?"

"Apparently Palutena has been slacking in that regard." Pit bristled.

"Don't you dare insult Lady Palutena. I'll beat the crap out of you."

"I'll say what I want. And if you had paid any attention, you would've realized I wasn't insulting her. I was criticizing. There's a difference, and much though you look up to her, she's not perfect. Furthermore, you are blowing this out of proportion, since we were actually just joking around. Seriously, though. Knocking. Learn how to do it. I like my space."

Pit calmed down after considering what his twin said. "Ok, I won't beat up you this time. Keep your 'criticisms' about Lady Palutena to yourself though. Let's go get some food."

Dark Pit rolled his eyes at Pit's oversensitivity about his goddess and followed him back to the kitchen. Palutena was there, clearly expecting them.

"Good morning Pit, Dark Pit. Did you sleep well?" she asked.

Before Dark Pit could answer Pit cut in "I found him sleeping on the floor." He glared at Pit.

"Oh, is the bed uncomfortable?" asked the goddess, concerned.

"It's not that." He reassured her. "I'm just not used to sleeping in a bed. I gave it a try, but it wasn't working. I'll figure it out, eventually. You don't need to do anything."

"I didn't even think of that." She admitted. "I guess there is nothing I _can_ do about that. Well, I decided to make breakfast so I could see how you're doing."

She'd made a typical eggs, bacon, and toast breakfast. They thanked her and sat down to this.

"So what are you two planning to do today?" she asked. "I don't expect you to get to work right away, you only just got here."

"But I was supposed to train centurions today." protested Pit.

Palutena waved her hand dismissively. "Dark Pit is new here. Your day would be better put to use showing him around and explaining how things work around here. The centurions can miss a day of training."

"That would be good." Dark Pit admitted. "I don't really feel like getting lost up here."

"Also," Palutena put in, "the centurions should get used to the idea of Dark Pit before he starts training them. We'll introduce him formally this evening."

Pit turned to Dark Pit.

"Alright, so I guess I'm showing you around, bro."

"Did you just call me 'bro'?"

"Yep."

Dark Pit raised an eyebrow.

"It's either that or Pittoo. Although it's not actually a name. It's appropriate though."

He rolled his eyes. "Fine. For now." He turned to Palutena. "So, where do you get this food from?"

She smiled. "Pit can show you that later. We raise it. There are gardens, and we have some livestock."

"Ok, I could see growing stuff. Keeping animals, though?"

"You liked that bacon, right?" Dark Pit chuckled.

"Touche. How does Viridi feel about that?"

"They're treated very well. She's looked over the conditions and approves." Palutena grinned. "She likes bacon too."

"Where do you keep all this, anyway? I didn't see anything like that."

"Skyworld is actually a pretty big place. You'll have to take the Lightning Chariot to see those things, they're kept far from living quarters."

Dark Pit smiled briefly at the thought. He really liked the chariot. He turned to his brother.

"Ok. So, Pit, when are we heading out?"

Pit shrugged. "Right after we're finished eating, if you don't have anything else to do."

"Sounds good. Let's go see the animals and gardens first."

Pit grinned, recognizing that Dark Pit simply wanted to fly as soon as possible.

They finished up and cleaned up after themselves. Pit led his twin outside and began pointing out various important structures as they headed over to set up the chariot.

"There's a library over there…"

"Here's the indoor training area…"

"Oh yeah! Here's the biggest hot spring in Skyworld!"

They didn't go into any of these buildings (much though Pit wanted to go see that hot spring), saving that for later. They got the chariot set up, Dark Pit carefully listening to Pit's instructions for future reference, and took off. In short order, they arrived at… large floating fields. A few of these had forest and bramble instead of grass. They could see several animals that moved away from the chariot as they flew over. Pit landed the chariot in a fenced in pasture (not that this makes any difference to flying unicorns) and released Phos and Lux.

"So, what do you want to see first?" asked Pit to his twin.

Dark Pit shrugged. "What's that over there?" he asked, pointing to a nearby pasture.

Pit looked. "Ah. You've found cows. You wanna be careful with them, they're not all nice and can seriously hurt you if you're not paying attention. We can go see them, just watch your back."

Well, the two angels can't fly on their own, but they can get a bit of lift with their wings and glide. Enough that, as Pit demonstrated, they could easily get over the fences. The cattle had noticed the visitors, and so by the time Dark Pit had gotten in, the two were surrounded by the curious bovines. One began to lick Pit's tunic. Two others cautiously sniffed Dark Pit, then started rubbing their heads on him.

"Yeah. They do things like that. You can try to discourage them, but it's kind of futile."

"You sound like you spend a lot of time here." Dark Pit observed.

Pit shrugged. "I like some of them. Things like chickens aren't particularly interesting, but goats are. Turkeys are always entertaining, too. Cattle aren't that interesting either, but they do have some personality to them."

"How many animals you got up here?" Dark Pit asked, somewhat surprised.

"I've never counted. I don't really work with them, just visit my favorites. There's a fair amount though. We've got a lot of centurions. Fortunately they don't need to eat very much, but they do still need food."

"You eat a lot of food." Dark Pit pointed out.

"So do you."

"That's not my point."

Pit shrugged. "Centurions are different."

Dark Pit accepted this. Not much point in delving further into the subject of the differences between Pit and the centurions.

"So what else you got here?"

"Turkeys?" Pit suggested.

"I'd rather not. I've seen enough of them wild."

"Ok then. Goats?"

"Sure."

Pit grinned. "They're over there, race ya!" He took off before Dark Pit could figure out what was going on.

"That's totally not fair! You got a head start and you know where you're going!" he shouted as he began running after the light angel.

"You gonna wuss out on me?" Pit yelled over his shoulder.

Dark Pit growled at this, and put on a burst of speed. Pit yelped when he saw his brother catching up and ran faster as well. He jumped at full speed and glided over to one of the forested islands, making it over the fence easily. He stopped, panting, then started looking into the bramble for the herd. Suddenly, with a shout, Pit was bowled over and faceplanted into the ground. He groaned, and looked up to see Dark Pit brushing himself off nonchalantly.

"WHAT WAS THAT FOR?!" He yelled.

"Who's a wuss now?" Dark Pit shot back.

Pit managed to swing his leg into the back of Dark Pit's knees, knocking him to the ground.

"Oh, it's on."

Dark Pit scrambled up and tackled Pit, who shoved him off and started wildly hitting anything he could reach. Dark Pit fended off the blows and managed to get in a solid punch to Pit's face.

"Aah, crap. That actually hurt." said Pit, backing off and rubbing his jaw.

"Whoops. Didn't mean to hit you so hard. Sorry 'bout that." apologized Dark Pit.

"Oh well. I think I'll survive this. It'll be a long road to recovery, though."

"I suppose it _is_ kind of a long road to the nearest hot spring…" Pit laughed at this, and Dark Pit smirked.

"Oh look. They're coming to see us." A herd of goats had made their way over and were about to greet Pit when they caught sight of Dark Pit. They stopped, and then a couple stepped cautiously towards him while stretching their necks out to sniff him. After a few moments, they had deemed him to not be a threat and two started to chew on his clothes while a third rubbed its head on his leg.

"Ok, what is it with these animals and either eating clothes or rubbing against me?" asked Dark Pit as he attempted to pull the cloth away from the goats.

"Both cows and goats like to have their heads and necks scratched. I dunno why they eat clothing." Pit gently shoved off a goat that had jumped up on him. "Also, they seem to have no sense of personal space. You'd best resign yourself to it."

"You're one to talk." commented Dark Pit. "You can't seem to stay out of anyone else's personal space." Pit looked at him.

"Ok, seriously. If you get down to their height, they will do things like climb on you or put their heads over your shoulder and chew right next to your ear."

"Sounds about right." Dark Pit said, grinning. Pit gave him a withering look.

"Ok, I'm not _that_ bad."

"Thank god."

"Anyway. There anything else here you want to see?"

Dark Pit considered. "I'm done with animals for now. Do you actually work with them?"

"I work with them sometimes, if I want to. It's not really in my job description, but it can be fun so I do come here sometimes. Not to mention I sometimes take Phos and Lux here when I want to train with them." Pit thought for a moment. "You should probably take a look at the gardens, just because sometimes Lady Palutena likes to work with them and she drags me along."

"Are you insinuating that I'll be dragged along too?"

"If not by Lady Palutena, then by me. You're not getting off that easy."

"We'll see about that. In any case, I may as well take a look."

"The gardens are a little ways that way." said Pit, pointing.

They spent the next couple uneventful hours looking around at the gardens and other animals before heading back with the chariot to eat some lunch. Afterwards, they visited the various buildings in Skyworld, starting with the training areas.

"So yeah, here's where we train indoors. This is mostly for when it's raining."

"It rains here? Are there seasons too?"

"No. It's kind of perpetually springtime here. But yeah, it does rain sometimes."

While the boys were talking, passing centurions were staring at Dark Pit with curiosity, some with suspicion. Several had greeted Pit upon their arrival, but none spoke to his twin at all. Dark Pit, of course, noticed this.

"How am I going to train them if they're this suspicious of me?" he asked Pit.

"They just don't know you." Pit assured. "Even if they don't like you, which I don't see why they wouldn't, they'll still obey you if that's what Lady Palutena or I say."

"Hm." responded Dark Pit, unsure.

Pit looked at his twin.

"It'll be okay, Pittoo."

Dark Pit went from looking brooding to his familiar annoyed expression.

"Ok, what's it gonna take to get you to stop saying that?!" he exploded.

"Dude! Calm down! I'm sorry, alright?!" Pit cried, holding his hands in front of him.

"You better be." Dark Pit grumbled, withdrawing. Pit lowered his arms.

"Geez, talk about overreacting!" Then Pit softened. "But seriously, bro. It'll be ok." Dark Pit sighed.

"Well, I'm not gonna give up this easily." He looked up at Pit. "What exactly does 'training' consist of, anyway?"

"Well, they know all the moves already. Some of it's stuff like target practice, some is to keep muscle strength up. But I don't really need to supervise these too much. What I do mostly is provide an opponent. I can fight them, without killing them. Remember that. Even though they get revived, they learn better if they're _not _dead. Of course I sometimes take them out against the wandering Underworld troops for practice. But other than that, I'm the only one that can fight them competently. If they only ever fought each other, they'd never get anywhere. This isn't always fun for me though, I'm always holding back."

Pit grinned suddenly. "With you here, I'll actually have a challenge."

Dark Pit grinned identically back. "I'm looking forward to this."

"Anyhow, here's where the weapons are kept…" and so the pair moved on.

Pit and Dark Pit spent the rest of the afternoon touring the area, giving the latter a better idea of his surroundings. Just as Palutena had promised, she spoke to the centurions that evening.

Dark Pit noticed that they seemed willing enough, although some glanced suspiciously in his direction. Still, he thought, it could be a lot worse. He was to train the centurions with Pit tomorrow, and he was looking forward to it.

Pit watched everything carefully, concerned about how the centurions would treat Dark Pit. He was pleased with the response. Dark Pit's involvement in saving both himself and the goddess of Light was known to the centurions, and many were willing to give the dark angel a chance. Pit hadn't expected an immediate 100% approval from them, but felt sure that any that didn't like him now would see that Dark Pit was a good person soon enough.


	6. Training

**I'm back. Dark Pit learns all about pancakes in this chapter. That is all.**

* * *

"Seriously, the floor again?"

Dark Pit grumbled and looked up. For the second morning in a row, he was awakened by Pit, who was even in the same position as last time. He was leaning against the doorframe with his arms crossed and staring down at the dark angel.

"Seriously, you can't knock again?"

"Well, I had to get you up. You've finally got new clothes." Pit informed him.

Dark Pit stood up and stretched.

"Really?"

Pit stepped out into the hall for a moment, returning with a double armful of dark cloth. He dumped the pile on the bed and went back out into the hall to fetch some extra sandals, another belt and gauntlets, and an extra clasp for Dark Pit. Since he'd specified that he liked the look he had, all these were identical to what he'd originally had except for the clasp and the belt, which were blue for some reason instead of his original purple. He had nothing against blue, though.

Dark Pit was separating the bundle of clothing that Pit had brought in and discovered the reason for the blue accessories. There were several new tunics, and two of them had a blue and gold border that the old one didn't have. Huh.

"Do any of your tunics have a different colored hem than red?" he questioned Pit.

"Hm? No, why?" Pit came over and looked over Dark Pit's shoulder at the tunic he was holding up.

"Huh. I wonder why she did that."

Dark Pit shrugged. Whatever. Maybe she thought he needed a little variety. He turned his head to look at Pit and narrowed one of his eyes at Pit's close proximity.

"And here you are, with your head over my shoulder. I thought you said yesterday you weren't that bad." Pit grinned at him. "Shoo. I want to get changed."

"Wait for me to get out before you start removing clothing, please." Dark Pit snorted.

Pit scurried out, closing the door behind him. After putting the extras away, Dark Pit put on one of the blue hemmed tunics with the blue clasp.

Pit was waiting in the hallway for him, and the two headed to the kitchen. Dark Pit was surprised to find it empty, since Palutena had been there the morning before. He said as much to Pit.

"She doesn't always eat here." Pit stated simply, searching the cupboards. He pulled out a large bowl and the ingredients to make pancakes. Dark Pit had never eaten pancakes, and had certainly never made them, so he ended up sitting and watching while Pit did the work.

"I find it interesting that you know how to do things like this" he commented, gesturing to the pancake batter.

Pit glanced at the bowl. "It's useful. I'd rather know how to than be completely clueless. Not to mention, pancakes are delicious."

Dark Pit didn't argue with this. He stood up and watched Pit work. He was quiet while Pit finished cooking the first pancakes, then asked if he could try the next ones. Pit handed the spatula over to him and talked him through the process. Dark Pit managed to rip one of the pancakes in half while trying to flip it, but finished the rest without incident.

"Want strawberries?" asked Pit, holding one up from a basket he'd found. "They're good on pancakes."

"Sure" agreed Dark Pit, setting the stack of pancakes on the table. Pit collected syrup and honey from the cabinets while his brother watched curiously.

"Sooo… how do you eat these, exactly?"

"You take a few. You put whatever you want on top. I put butter on each pancake, then syrup on the top." He demonstrated, also adding the aforementioned strawberries. Dark Pit imitated him.

"This is kind of a strange food."

"Ok, Pittoo. What exactly have you been eating?"

"I'm going to murder you if you keep calling me that."

Pit rolled his eyes and didn't respond to the threat, preferring instead to continue eating his pancakes.

"I shot stuff. I gathered stuff." Dark Pit said.

"Sounds pleasant." commented Pit drily.

"Yeah, this is an improvement." said Dark Pit bluntly.

"Glad to hear that."

"Although these things are still weird."

Pit scrutinized his plate. "I guess they kind of are. I never thought about it, I'm just used to it."

"So, how long is our day when we're training centurions?" asked Dark Pit, changing the subject.

"Pretty much all morning, break for lunch, then 'til 3 or so. I can train them however I want in that time. So I don't have to actually fight if I don't feel up to it. The centurions can practice other things if I don't fight them."

"Oh, I'm feeling up to fighting." said Dark Pit. Pit grinned.

"Perhaps we can do a demonstration/beat the crap out of each other match." He suggested.

"I thought that yesterday, when you showed me the training area, the floor looked rather dirty. Your face would be perfect to clean it with." mused Dark Pit.

"Don't count on it," advised Pit, "I've been training all these months with the centurions and sometimes Phosphora. You've been training with… squirrels and rabbits."

_Crap! He's right_ realized Dark Pit. But he retorted "I've been pretending each one had your face on it."

Both were silent for several seconds, creating the mental picture of Pit's face on a squirrel.

"And then you ate them." Pit pointed out. "Cannibal. Also, fratricide." Pit tilted his head to one side. "Or a form of suicide, if you want to get technical."

"Let's stop talking about this and get to the actual 'me-beating-you-up'," suggested Dark Pit.

"Cleanup first. Lady Palutena doesn't like it when I don't clean up after making food."

"Always gotta appease your goddess" agreed Dark Pit. Pit threw a dishtowel at his head.

"What'd I tell you yesterday, huh?" demanded Pit.

"Remember the part where I'll say what I want?" asked Dark Pit.

"Remember the part where Lady Palutena is being really nice to you?" retorted Pit.

"This is me, being nice back." insisted Dark Pit. "You don't want to see me being not nice."

"Uh huh." Pit was not convinced, but he dropped it for the time being.

They finished cleaning up (Dark Pit is really slow at washing dishes. He needs practice!) and made their way to the outdoor training area. They had each brought a bow with them. A group of centurions was gathered, waiting for their captain to arrive. They flocked to Pit, greeting him. A few said hello to Dark Pit as well, and he was carefully polite back, unsure how to interact with them and not wanting to alienate them.

"Ok, listen up! Me'n Pittoo here-" Dark Pit slapped his hand over Pit's mouth to shut him up.

"My name is Dark Pit! You're about to see what happens when you call me Pittoo!" He let go of Pit.

"…Anyway! We're going to have a match with each other. I could go through the effort of finding a reason this is important for your training, but I really just want to kick his ass. He's been pissing me off all morning. It should be entertaining for you to see me defeat this pathetic excuse for an angel!"

Dark Pit was glaring daggers at Pit, although like most of the other insults they'd traded that morning, they both knew this was simply build up for the fight. Like the insults, the furious glaring was a necessity. Pit made a point of yawning in a bored manner in response to the death look he was being targeted with.

"Where would you like me to murder you?" Dark Pit politely asked.

"You may _attempt_ to kill me over there, although you're not likely to succeed. Don't worry, I won't rearrange your face too much."

The boys moved to the center of the yard while the centurions moved to the edges, eagerly waiting to see Pit fight someone as skilled as he was, for once. Dark Pit had separated his bow while his twin had kept his intact. They agreed to keep the fight only a few minutes long, so they wouldn't exhaust themselves before having to actually train the centurions. Pit was also doing this so there wouldn't be a clear winner, since he suspected that his twin really was out of practice.

"Ready, Pittoo?"

"Way ahead of you, ArmPit."

They circled each other, tossing a few insults back and forth and waiting for someone to take the first shot.

Suddenly, Dark Pit dashed forward, slashing at Pit's middle with one of his swords. Pit jumped back and the attack missed. He retaliated with three rapidly shot arrows, two of which hit their target. While the dark angel was recovering Pit ran forward and slashed at the other, only to have his bow met by Dark Pit's crossed blades. There was a loud _shing _as the blades separated and the two jumped back.

They contemplated each other for about half a second before Dark Pit formed his blades back into a bow and shot at Pit. Pit hadn't been idle, and as soon as Dark Pit started moving he had charged a shot and sent it at his twin. The two shots met and the charged shot continued, weakened, towards where Dark Pit was. Or rather, had been.

He'd circled counterclockwise around Pit as soon as the arrow left his bow and shot several more rounds, three of them striking before Pit intercepted them by swinging at them with his blade. He had developed great precision with this, and was able to hit the arrows with the narrow edge. They bounced off, but missed Dark Pit because he was still moving.

Before Pit could recover or figure out where his opponent had gone, Dark Pit had slashed at him from the left and opened up a gash on his upper arm. Pit took this in stride, and spun to his right, snapping his foot out behind him and kicking the dark angel back. In an instant Pit had completed the spin and was facing Dark Pit again. He'd been charging another shot during his previous maneuver and loosed it at Dark Pit, who wasn't able to move in time. As soon as he'd let the arrow go, Pit had begun to dash at his opponent and managed to cut him shallowly across the chest with the bow.

Dark Pit responded by swinging his right leg around and hitting Pit in the side, hard enough to send him sprawling. Pit instantly sprang up and swung his bow at Dark Pit, who jumped backwards and readied a charged shot. This hit home, but Pit used his Angel Ring move (side special in SSBB) and the shots that Dark Pit followed up with were reflected back at him. At this point, a timer went off indicating the end of the fight and both twins looked in the direction of the noise while coming out of their defensive positions. Pit quickly walked over to Dark Pit.

"You ok? You're bleeding." Pit said. Dark Pit rolled his eyes.

"So are you, moron. I think I'll live." He moved to look at Pit's arm. "I think you'll live, too." He announced. "Although, you should probably wrap this up until you can get it fixed."

Both got themselves patched up and assembled the centurions.

"Alright!" said Pit. "It's his first day, so I'm not sending him to do anything alone right now. Long story short, groups of you will be fighting the both of us. We'll be a team. You're gonna take us out."

"Yeah, right!" shouted one of the centurions. Everyone else chuckled. Pit headed back out to the center of the arena, and Dark Pit followed him.

"So who wants to go first?" The centurions assembled themselves into groups and one of these groups approached the angels.

"I believe I mentioned this before, Pittoo, but try not to kill them." Pit explained, not noticing his brother's narrowed eyes at the nickname. "Don't hit too hard. Unless you're dealing with larger ones. Use your judgment." Dark Pit decided to let it slide, since yelling at him would be ineffective when Pit hadn't even noticed the death glare. He nodded to indicate that he understood. Pit turned to the centurions.

"Ready?" Pit asked the group. They all gave various cheesy battle cries. Dark Pit heard one shout "For the hot springs!" and snorted. One shouted a beat after the rest "I surrender!"

Pit fought to keep from smiling, and failed. "Hey! That guy over there has the right idea!" he said to the centurion who had surrendered prematurely. "What will become of our hot springs if you surrender?!" The centurion grinned while bowing his head.

"I am ashamed. Of course I will defend our hot springs from you, captain!"

"What?!" Pit cried dramatically. "Keep me from a hot spring?! Why-" A light bulb went on. "I've just figured out what our last exercise of the day will be." He shook his head. "Enough nonsense about keeping me out of hot springs. There's no point discussing the impossible. Alright, let's go!"

And with that, the centurions surged forward to attack the angels. Pit was, of course, already used to this. Dark Pit accidentally killed a few centurions since he was not used to holding back like this. The centurions avoided him in the beginning, preferring to deal with their familiar captain until Dark Pit rolled his eyes and swatted them off Pit. Then they took him seriously, and in fact a few seemed to forget that Pit was also their opponent and tried to defend him from his darker twin. Eventually they all got used to the arrangement and they worked much better once they did. After the mock battle, Pit told the rest they'd better have learned from watching the first group. He encouraged the centurions they had just battled, then called for the next group.

And so the rest of the morning progressed, Pit and Dark Pit fighting as a pair against the centurions. Some of them fell into the same pattern as the first few, some got it right away. Dark Pit made an effort to scale down his attacks, and didn't kill any more centurions. As both twins had noted the night before, a few centurions seemed to not like the dark angel, and these ones always tried to protect Pit from him (Even as Pit was slashing at them) during the battles. They'd listen when Pit told them to stop, but they didn't like it. All in all though, both angels were pleased with the reception. They rehashed the morning's events as they ate their lunch a little apart from the centurions.

"So, how'd you like it?" asked Pit.

"It was kind of fun. I haven't fought anything in a long time." Dark Pit admitted.

"Yeah, you smiled a lot." observed Pit. "It's kind of funny how a lot of them forgot they were fighting me, too." His brother grinned a little.

"I'd be more disturbed by it, but most of them really were just confused. I see why you need to keep on them" he said. "I killed a bunch of them" Dark Pit noted.

"Ah, don't worry about it. Did you see them respawning by the sidelines? They're fine." Assured Pit. "And you did improve."

"By the way, I have a bone to pick with you" stated Dark Pit, suddenly looking annoyed.

"Hm?"

"Don't. Call. Me. PITTOO!" he yelled.

"Honestly, _Pittoo_. I don't even think about it, it just comes out." retorted Pit. Dark Pit cuffed the side of his head.

"Well, start thinking about it." He demanded. "I can't stand that name. It's _stupid_."

"I'm not calling you Dark Pit. It's just awkward for me." The two glared at each other before deciding to pick this up again later.

"So what are we doing after lunch?" Dark Pit asked, as if he hadn't been contemplating Pit's untimely death just a few seconds ago.

"We'll be setting the centurions against each other and supervising." Pit replied, also promptly forgetting about their argument.

"You mentioned figuring out what we're doing last. Dare I ask?" Pit grinned.

"You'll find out. It involves the hot spring, as you probably gathered."

The two finished their lunches and waited for the centurions to do the same. When the centurions returned to the training arena, Pit instructed them to form different groups from last time and to don vests with different colors to distinguish the teams. The angels watched the battles, and Pit would point out problems and encourage the fighters. Dark Pit eventually started giving out his advice, too and the centurions received his instruction well. The afternoon rang out with terrible battle cries, and some of Dark Pit's advice had to do with 'improving' these. He also suggested some good taunts, smirking mischievously the whole time. Many centurions eagerly took these up. Pit facepalmed when he heard one tell an opponent to 'Feel the fail' after defeating it. Finally came the end of the training day.

"Ok, for our last exercise!" began Pit. "It's really quite simple. Follow me!" Pit led them out of the arena and beckoned his brother closer. When all the centurions had arrived outside, Pit turned and pointed to the hot spring that lay across the floating island.

"The two of us will get into that hot spring."

Someone muttered "Like he had to _tell_ us that he was getting into a hot spring." Pit frowned.

"Am I really that predictable?"

"YES!" yelled all the centurions and Dark Pit. Pit stepped on his twin's foot. Dark Pit lightly shoved him away.

"Anyway!" Pit continued. "You will try to do the impossible: Stop us." Dark Pit laughed loudly at this.

At this pronouncement, there were shouts of dismay. Someone yelled "We're all gonna die!"

Pit smirked. "Don't worry, we're not using our weapons. Once one of us touches the water you can stop attacking that one. But rest assured. We will both make it into that hot spring. Alright, get ready."

The centurions ran to position themselves between the angels and the hot spring.

"Ready? Go!"

And with that, Pit and Dark Pit split up and dashed to either side of the crowd. Pit ran a few steps before being blocked by a centurion strongarm. He ducked under its arm and was hit in the head with an arrow. He shook his head and dodged another before dashing through a gap in the archers that had formed a line in front of him. Suddenly he was knocked forward to the ground and found he couldn't get up because several centurion archers had apparently come up with the plan to stop him by sitting on him. Well, he had an option here.

"Bro! Come help me out!" he cried.

Several seconds later of struggling to throw the centurions off, they were suddenly forcefully knocked off by Dark Pit flinging himself at the mass. The dark angel instantly jumped off the pileup and sprinted towards the hot spring, only to be blocked by several knights. Pit jumped on one from the side and knocked it into the others, creating enough confusion for Dark Pit to slip through their shields. Pit launched himself over them and followed on Dark Pit's heels. They both got hit with a few more arrows, but they faced no more obstructions. Dark Pit arrived first, and then Pit jumped in with a whoop.

"Ok, you guys are done for the day. Bye!"

Pit waved at the centurions and they saluted him and dispersed. He leaned back in a shallow area of the hot spring and closed his eyes, sighing contentedly. Dark Pit checked the cut he had sustained while fighting Pit, and found it was gone. His clothes had been repaired, too. It seems that hot springs can fix clothing, and there's a reason Pit never undresses to soak in a hot spring. (have I blown everyone's mind?)

"I think I figured out what you've been going on about with hot springs." Dark Pit commented. Pit opened one blue eye and grinned.

"Yep. Only problem is, it is advised that you don't stay in too long. So enjoy it while you can. By the way, I'm going to yell at you later for teaching them those taunts."

Dark Pit laughed and took his twin's advice and they didn't speak or move until Pit regretfully informed him it was time to get out of the hot spring. Pit unwrapped his arm to reveal that his cut had also healed and the two sat out in the sun for awhile, somehow not getting sunburns or tanning and generally enjoying life.

* * *

**I don't know where the whole thing with the differently hemmed tunic came from. There was no particular reason for it. I just felt like sticking it in, and it doesn't hurt anything. I do hope my action-y scenes came out well. With the first one, I have no idea exactly how competent fighters fight. But I liked how the scene played out in my head. So, yeah.**


	7. New Name

**This is not an action or long chapter, and it really has only one purpose. If you read the chapter title, you probably already guessed this purpose. Dark Pit gets his new name! It's not Kuro! We'll eliminate it, though.**

* * *

"Hey Pittoo - "

"Stop right there. My name is Dark Pit. Continue."

Dark Pit had been strolling around Skyworld, letting his mind wander when Pit ran up to tell him… whatever he was going to tell him. Obviously Dark Pit had to defend his name first though.

"Seriously, you need a different name. It's _weird_ to call you by my own name."

"Well _you're_ not coming up with one." Dark Pit said, crossing his arms. "If you'll recall, the last time you tried you came up with 'Pittoo'."

"Nuh-uh. Lady Palutena made that up. I just approved of it."

Dark Pit rolled his eyes. "Ok, so the last time you tried, you _approved_ of 'Pittoo'."

"Oh come on now, Pittoo-"

"DARK PIT!"

"I'm not calling you that. Like I said, it's weird. So we may as well settle this now." Pit ended this statement by mimicking his brothers' crossed arms.

Dark Pit grumbled. There was some merit to the idea, although he childishly wished it had been his idea instead of Pit's. He was beginning to dislike the concept that he was a _Dark_ Pit anyway. It carried the connotation that he was evil. In the beginning, it had amused him, in the same way that Pit had been delighted by the concept of space pirates stealing constellations. Evil things can be awesome, but Dark Pit doesn't actually like evil any more than Pit does. And so he wasn't amused anymore. This might not have been a problem, except some of those centurions still didn't like or trust him, although they never said anything to his face. He'd heard them though, when they thought he couldn't hear.

They muttered to each other about his dark wings (always the wings), his blood red eyes, his black clothing. Such a contrast to their captain. To these individuals, he was their captain's shadow, his dark side. Like everyone else thought at first, Dark Pit included. They would have even doubted that he had any relationship to Pit at all, if it weren't for his identical features. He was unnatural, and created by an agent of the Underworld. Not to be trusted, and they privately criticized their captain and their goddess for doing so. Although there were really only a few of these, their quiet, unrelenting suspicion was wearing on him, creating doubt. Perhaps a change would help.

With this in mind, Dark Pit decided to give it a shot. Pit seemed pretty set on it anyway, and it's hard to derail him once he's started on something. If Dark Pit refused now, Pit might still just call him Pittoo. Or he may come up with a new name, and the new one would risk being even worse. Dark Pit figured he may as well supervise and make sure the new name didn't make him want to shoot himself. Or Pit.

"Alright, what did you have in mind?"

Dark Pit sat down under one of the several trees that inexplicably grew in Skyworld as he said this. Seriously, he thought to himself, what are trees doing growing in the sky? Maybe he'd get Pit to ask Palutena. He wouldn't dream of asking her himself.

"Well, I hadn't really thought about it since I assumed that 'Pittoo' would eventually stick. Any names appeal to you?" Pit sat down next to Dark Pit.

Dark Pit shook his head. "Not really. That is, I haven't heard of any I'd particularly like applied to myself."

Pit tilted his head. "What if we tried to make up a new one? We can try to base it off of Dark Pit and see if anything works."

Dark Pit raised an eyebrow, asking "isn't that how you came up with Pittoo?"

Pit shook his head once. "No, Pittoo is my name and the number two stuck together."

Dark Pit let that sink in. He hadn't ever really thought about what Pittoo sounded like, but now that Pit had told him, he could easily hear 'Pit-two'. Did this make Pit Pit-one? He'd have to explore that as a way to irritate Pit later. Back to the subject at hand.

"Wow. Now I _really_ never want to be called that again. No offence, Pit."

Pit nodded, understanding what his twin meant. Dark Pit continued.

"Ok, let's see what you got. As long as whatever it is doesn't make me facepalm when I hear it."

"How 'bout Kuro?"

"Nope! That's one that everyone knows means d-. Nevermind. Something else, please." He didn't really want to discuss what was going through his mind.

Pit considered. "Well, there's not a lot to work with. We could try mashing the words together and see if anything sounds cool."

"Like I said, if it passes the facepalm test I'm good."

"Heh heh, Tarp. Or Dirp." Pit sniggered. When Dark Pit made a show of facepalming with both hands Pit started outright laughing. "Alright alright, I wasn't serious about those. They were just funny."

"If you start calling me either of those I will pluck all your feathers, stuff my pillows with them, then toss you off Skyworld."

"Ok, new try" Pit said quickly to dash the thought of feather plucking from Dark Pit's mind. He knew his brother wouldn't actually (seriously) hurt him on purpose, but it might occur to him that a few missing feathers wouldn't really harm Pit while seriously annoying him. He might even actually stuff the stolen feathers in a pillow for awhile, to further irritate Pit. It would be safer to distract him.

"How about…" Pit's mind cast around frantically. There were many nonsense words you could arrange the letters of Dark Pit into, and none really sounded particularly good. Maybe this was the wrong way to go about a new name. He spewed out the first non offensive thing that came to mind

"Dart?"

Pit tilted his head to one side "I don't see anything wrong with that. And it keeps the origin more or less intact, if you know where it came from it's easy to see the resemblance."

Dark Pit thought about it. "I actually am not all that concerned with whether or not it came from my original name. But I think I'll try it, if you like it. You're right, it's not too bad. And I'm not facepalming." He smiled.

Pit grinned in relief. "Awesome. Darts are cool. Poison darts are even cooler. Hehe. You're named after a weapon now!"

He laughed. "Sure, if it makes you happy without my ever hearing 'Pittoo' again."

Pit smiled, and briefly leaned against his brother.

"I'm glad you're happy, bro."

He sat up before his twin had a chance to shove him away, then cheered happily and got up to run off to god knows where. Probably to Palutena to tell her all about the new development.

"Wait, didn't you want to tell me something before?" Pit stopped and turned around, scratching the back of his head. "I kinda forgot actually… it wasn't really that important."

Dark Pit, newly shortened to Dart, shrugged.

"Ah well."

Then he smirked. "In any case, it occurred to me earlier that I could use feather plucking as retaliation for any of the myriad of stupid things you routinely do."

Pit's eyes widened. "Aw hell no!" he wailed.

"Like obnoxiously cheering." Dart continued

"Oh come on, that wasn't that stupid. You're just looking for an excuse to annoy me." Pit accused.

"Ok, you got me." He admitted. "Regardless, you'd best run. I don't really need much of an excuse to annoy you, and your shouting is sufficient for now."

Pit followed the advice and Dart ran after him. He grinned to himself as he ran because it hadn't occurred to Pit that he could simply threaten to pluck _his_ feathers to stop him for the moment, because then they'd be at a stalemate. He wasn't going to give him the hint though.

* * *

**Ok, I plan to get Viridi involved next chapter. I kind of put her on the sidelines for awhile, but I think that she's been busy (being a goddess and all), and didn't really have time to check on things right away.**

**This was a short chapter, mostly for the purpose of giving Dark Pit his new name. It's not at all creative, and what Pit said is almost literally what ran through my mind way back when I decided that Dark Pit was not a proper name. Dart is the name that my mind applied to him long before I dreamed up this fanfic, and it seems good enough that I have no desire to oust it in favor of something like Kuro. Plus, like I said way back in chapter one, I'm kind of tired of 'Kuro' and I can't get it to stick anyway. So introducing Dart! Pit's still gonna call him Pittoo sometimes to piss him off though. It's what a normal sibling would do.**


	8. Testing Limits

**Oh dear. Conflict. Pit's about to make DP all mad.**

* * *

Dart was dreaming. It was a good dream in which he could fly again. There was nothing in the dream but himself and the clouds. He lazily dipped in and out of them simply enjoying the experience, as he had many times before he lost his ability to fly. In some ways, it was the best time of his life. Dart saw a random tall mountain in the distance. Having nothing better to do, he decided to go check it out. He dipped below the clouds to check the landscape, when-

THUNK

Dart was on the floor of his room, his shoulder in pain and Pit's obnoxiously happy face upside down in his vision.

"C'mon bro! We've got something fun to do today!" he exclaimed cheerfully, holding onto one of Dart's arms.

"Goddammit Pit! Is your goal this morning to dislocate my shoulder? Let go!" yelled Dart.

"Why yes! That was my goal! Did I accomplish it?" asked Pit, grinning and finally releasing his brother.

"I'm going to kill you." Dart was seriously pissed. That was a good dream and Pit had to ruin it in a particularly idiotic manner. He stood up and rubbed his sore shoulder, resisting the urge to throw a punch at Pit's stupid face.

"I'm kidding. You know I wouldn't actually do that." protested Pit, finally catching on to Dart's unusually bad mood.

"Could've fooled me." snarled Dart. He pointed to the door. "Get out. Now."

"Hey, I'm sorry Dart-" Pit put his hand the dark angel's shoulder, worriedly trying to calm him down.

"GO!" Dart roared, roughly shoving Pit away.

Pit managed to catch himself before he fell, then swiftly ran out of the room. This was the first time Dart had ever really been mad at him, and Pit didn't know how to handle it. Normally he'd wait for his twin, but given the circumstances… well, he'd just go get breakfast alone. He was disappointed to find the kitchen empty, his goddess having decided to eat elsewhere this morning. He could have used her advice.

Dart had only been in Skyworld for about two weeks now, but Pit had already become used to his company. He began to regret not waiting, even though his brother was mad at him.

Pit was pondering food choices when he heard the familiar sound of Dart's sandals on the floor outside the room, going a little more quickly than his usual pace. He appeared in the doorway and relaxed a little when he saw Pit was there. Pit flinched, not sure what to expect.

"Oh, there you are. You left without me." accused Dart.

As soon as he couldn't find Pit, he'd begun to feel bad for lashing out at him and felt even worse when he saw Pit cringe away from him now. But at the same time, he was kind of irritated that Pit was managing to make him feel guilty, when Dart had had good reason to be mad in the first place, although shoving him like that was probably a bit much.

"Well, yeah. You told me to leave." Pit replied, rather stiffly. If his brother had still sounded angry when he arrived, Pit would have been meek and apologetic, trying to win back favor. Since Dart sounded like he'd been worried, Pit responded by guilt tripping to make the other work to win back _his_ favor. Naturally, Pit wasn't exactly thinking this. Somewhere in him, without him actually thinking about it, he wants to know exactly how much his twin cares, how far he would go for Pit. What he was willing to put up with for Pit. Testing the limits, you know? Dart's lashing out had unconsciously urged him to find out, so he'll know how to react. So he felt prompted to overreact to the situation. It worked, and on the same level that Pit was testing him, Dart knew he was being tested. If you asked them about it though, they'd have no idea what you're talking about.

Dart threw his arms up in exasperation.

"What'd you expect me to do? Be happy that you pulled me out of bed and tried to wrench my arm out of its socket?" he demanded. Pit winced.

"I was just excited about what I have planned today, and I thought you'd be happy too." Pit said in a small voice, looking at the floor.

"Oh, for the love of..." Dart muttered, resting his face on his hand for a second. "You are far too sensitive. You didn't actually injure me, and I'm over it. Does that make you feel any better?"

"You didn't have to push me." mumbled Pit, still looking down. Argh. There he goes again, looking all sad and hurt. Even though it had been Pit's fault in the first place. Pit is exceptionally good at this, and his twin was feeling a mixture of guilt and irritation towards him. Dart mentally cussed Pit out for making him feel guilty.

"You wanna tell me what you had planned for today?" he asked, forcing the impatience out of his voice.

Pit didn't answer, instead returning his attention to breakfast. He decided on cereal and started pulling out the necessary things.

"Ugh. What do you want me to do, Pit?" Dart demanded, frustrated.

"You want some cereal, too?" Pit asked. Dart threw his hands up again while rolling his eyes. He turned around, walked over to the wall, and began hitting his head on it. If they weren't both so upset, it would have been comical.

After a short time, Dart stopped suddenly and looked up, his eyes wide as he thought of a sure fire way to get Pit back on his side. This was _Pit_, after all. How many times had he had to fend off Pit's various affectionate behaviors in the past two weeks? Dart personally blamed Palutena, who only encouraged him and apparently had been for Pit's whole life.

He noticed that Pit seemed more determined to give him hugs than Palutena. Maybe because he kept refusing them (It's not that he was really averse to Pit, it was just _embarrassing_), Pit might simply see it as a challenge. That doesn't seem like him though. Pit genuinely cares, and he constantly tries to remind Dart of this.

See, there's still a part of him that's certain that one day, Pit and Palutena (and everyone else he liked) would decide they'd had enough and turn him away. This was partly what spurred him to leave everyone in the first place. He can't lose friends he doesn't have. Pit knows this, so he makes an effort to show Dart that he cares about him. So awkward though Dart finds things like hugs, he doesn't really want Pit to stop trying to give them out, because it does kind of make him feel better. Dart just wants to, you know, yell at him for doing it. Pit gets it. Although now, it looks like it might be time to return the favor. Dart is well aware of just how important their friendship is to both of them, and he doesn't want to risk alienating Pit.

…Still, if there was anything else, less awkward for him, that would work…

"That's a last resort measure" Dart commented out loud. He knew he'd do it though, although he didn't know why. Just like Pit doesn't realize he's posing a silent question, Dart doesn't realize he's answering it.

Despite himself, Pit looked curiously at him, although he just moved his eyes and didn't turn his head so he didn't look like he was looking. It didn't really matter, since Dart was still leaning against the wall. Pit resumed his activities after a moment.

"Crap. I can't think of anything else." Dart muttered to himself. Pit managed to hear this, and his curiosity as to what the other was thinking of was increasing. He wasn't going to ask, though.

Eventually Dart folded his arms tightly against himself and turned around slowly, looking down. Pit stopped what he was doing and watched him. Dart suddenly strode up to Pit and stopped a few inches away. He looked up and cringed. Pit raised an eyebrow.

"This is your master plan? To stand there cringing at me?" he asked the darker twin sarcastically.

"Will you shut up? I'm working myself up to it." said Dart, cringing even more. A few silent minutes passed, and Pit got impatient.

"Dude, it's been five minutes. Will you just get on with it?"

Dart snarled viciously and suddenly put his arms around Pit, his hands in fists. Pit, not expecting this, froze for several moments, then shouted with delight and hugged him back. Dart was scowling, but relaxed a little when he realized that it had worked. Of course it had worked. Outwardly, this was an insignificant spat about nothing. Underneath that, and far more importantly, Pit had needed reassurance that his brother cared. Which he got.

"You're never breathing a word about this to anyone. Capiche?" Dart demanded.

"I can't believe you actually did that." said Pit happily.

"It was still all your fault. Why is it me that has to do all the apologizing?!" yelled Dart, mad because he was out of his comfort zone. Fortunately for him, Pit was too happy to take it seriously, and he understood anyway. Dart wouldn't have gone to such great lengths if he was still angry at Pit.

Pit's also smart enough not to point out that his twin hadn't actually apologized. He figured that the hug was enough and didn't want to push it.

"Ok, ok. I'm sorry I dragged you out of bed and made you mad." Pit let go and stepped back. Dart refolded his arms around himself firmly and kept his hands balled into fists.

"Yeah. Whatever. Just try to curb your enthusiasm in the future." With that, Dart turned and ran out, leaving a slightly confused Pit standing in the kitchen. After a moment, he decided to leave the dark angel alone. He went about eating cereal and was unsurprised when his twin returned about ten minutes later, looking far more relaxed than when he'd left. Pit gave him a sunny smile and handed him the cereal.

"So what was that about?" wondered Pit.

"I had to recover my dignity." replied Dart.

"Oh come on. Was it really that bad?" questioned Pit. Dart glared at him.

"I don't do hugs, is all."

"But you don't react that way when I hug you. You just try to push me away." observed Pit.

"It's different, alright? I wouldn't have done any such thing under normal circumstances, unlike you. It was a desperate move on my part. I figured it would do the trick. And I only did it because it's you. You better damn well feel special now.

Soooo" Dart had to raise his voice above Pit, who was trying to respond. "What are we doing today?" he asked, giving a look that warned Pit to just go along with it. He was done talking about this.

Pit nodded slowly. "We're going out with the unicorns today, to the Overworld." Dart's interest piqued. Seeing this, Pit continued.

"There's two of them, and there's two of us. You wanna have a race?"

Before Dart could respond, Pit added matter-of-factly, "I'll understand completely if you don't, you'll definitely be more embarrassed than you were a few minutes ago when you lose."

Unlike earlier, this was a situation Dart knew well how to respond to.

"You're right, Pit. I'm already embarrassed on your behalf that I'll have to throw the race for you, since you'll never win otherwise. You know, to keep up your self-esteem." He smirked. "Let's see you turn that one around" he challenged. Pit launched a comeback.

"What you don't realize is that this is all a ploy. I don't need to be better at riding to win. All I gotta do is pretend to have a fragile ego, and you'll feel bad and let me win. The whole thing this morning was an elaborate test, and clearly it works. So I win by smarts and manipulation." Pit leaned back in his chair, grinning smugly. Dart raised an eyebrow, impressed. He began to clap.

"Wow. I think I have to concede this round to you, that was clever. I'll get you some other time, though."

Pit grandly raised his arms in the air while bowing his head, accepting the applause and praise.

"Thenextpersontosaywhatdoesdishes!" Dart said very quickly after he finished applauding.

Pit looked confused and said "What?" Dart smirked as Pit replayed what he'd said and a look of amused annoyance crossed his face.

"Ok, you got me. Fine, I'm better at it than you anyway."

*fast forward to when the two are out in the chariot*

"So why do we have the chariot if we're going to be racing the unicorns?" asked Dart, concentrating on directing the Lightning Chariot. Pit, who was sprawled lazily across the seat, shrugged.

"It's not strictly necessary, but you need practice driving the chariot and you've never actually ridden a unicorn. If you were to fall off…" Dart nodded, satisfied with just the first part but recognizing that the second part was true as well.

Pit started giving directions to his brother, who was now guiding the chariot down onto a large, grassy plain. The unicorns knew what they were doing, and the terrain wasn't tricky at all so it was an ideal place for Dart to practice landing, at least for the beginning. The twins hopped out of the chariot and took the harness off the pair of unicorns. Pit ended up with Phos, Dart with Lux. Dart looked at the tall unicorn, before turning to ask Pit how he was supposed to get on it. He was surprised to find Pit already on his unicorn, patting the mane.

"How'd you do that so quickly?" he demanded to know.

Pit didn't say anything, instead jumping off the unicorn and remounting. Dart watched him, then copied him successfully. They spent an uneventful morning riding. Because Dart is an angel, and fairly athletic to begin with, he picked up the skill fairly quickly. Pit said he'd also learned quickly when he decided to try it out several months ago. At noon, the two stopped for lunch and let the unicorns loose. They ran away swiftly, alarming Dart until Pit assured him that they were simply looking for water and would come back. They'd also return if he called them. They returned a while later, each one nuzzling one of the angels (Phos stole a piece of bread from Pit), and began to graze.

They were just about finished eating when a familiar voice rang out.

"Are those two flightless angels I see over yonder?"

The flightless angels in question glared at each other since they couldn't glare at the speaker. They heard a giggle followed by a whirlwind forming. The goddess of Nature stepped out of the whirlwind, openly laughing in amusement at the angels when they both simultaneously directed their glares at her.

"It's nice to see you two getting along" she commented. Pit stopped glaring and smiled. Dart ruffled his wings in irritation at the previous slight to them.

"It's not cool to make fun of our wings." he stated simply.

"Oh, get over it." advised Viridi. "I meant nothing by it. But it is funny to see you fluff your feathers like that when you get mad."

"Hi Viridi!" put in Pit before his brother could retort. "I haven't seen you since you came to Skyworld and sent me after him." he said, jerking his thumb at Dart.

"And I see that turned out well for everyone" she said, looking satisfied. Dart glared at both of them.

"I'm right here you know…" he growled. Although he was still happy he went to Skyworld, he was annoyed on principle that everyone else had orchestrated the whole thing. He wasn't going to say that, but they both knew anyway.

"Oh stop it, Dart. You should be glad that people like you enough to want you around." insisted Pit.

"Wait. We're not still calling him Pittoo?" inquired Viridi. Dart directed his red glare at her again.

"Is that the only thing you guys called me when I wasn't around?" he demanded to know. Pit and Viridi looked at each other, then at Dart.

"…Pretty much" they both answered at the same time.

The dark angel took out his anger at this information by viciously pulling up two handfuls of grass and throwing them at his two companions. It was pathetic. They all stared at the failure at retaliation for several silent seconds. Finally Pit and Viridi looked up at each other again.

"…Better watch out for the temper on this one. He's a badass" the goddess warned Pit.

"You're telling me?" Pit retorted. "My brother is a free spirit, not to be tied down or bound by rules. I told him to only stay in the hot springs for 20 minutes, but yesterday, he stayed in for _21_ minutes."

*Insert 'watch out guys, we're dealing with a badass over here' meme*

"Woah. A risk taker." said Viridi in a serious voice.

"Indeed." confirmed Pit, gravely.

Several more seconds passed in silence. Finally, Dart commented "You know, I'm just so awesome that even the dullest thing I do is epic. That's why you two are speechless as you contemplate my flippantly ignoring Pit's rules. Don't worry, you'll get used to it. Tomorrow, I plan to stay in the hot spring for _21_ _and a half_ minutes.

Pit and Viridi exchanged amused looks as Dart looked smug.

"…How did the Mirror of Truth create this guy again?" Pit asked rhetorically. "I think the only thing it got right is my _astoundingly_ attractive appearance, but with the wrong colors."

Viridi put up a hand. "I've got a theory. That I just now pulled out of nowhere." She paused, waiting for the angels' reactions.

"Oh, do go on." suggested Dart enthusiastically.

"Now you'll both recall that while you were dealing with Pandora and Medusa, it was really Hades pulling the strings the whole time."

Both angels nodded. Viridi continued.

"So Pandora had the Mirror of Truth, but also had a very close relative of this mirror, which Hades thought it would be hilarious to get a clone of Pit from." They leaned forward, listening intently.

"I believe that instead of revealing the Mirror of Truth to Pit, Pandora revealed the lesser known Mirror of _Trolling_. And so, that thing came into existence." Viridi finished, pointing at the dark angel.

Pit arranged a look of astonishment on his face. "My god. It makes so much sense. The Mirror of Trolling. Even the colors make sense now."

Dart was grinning. "Nice one, Viridi. What's really funny is while I've never heard of one existing, it would not surprise me in the least if Hades had such a thing."

"I know, right?" Viridi agreed. "I'm kind of surprised he didn't, now that I've thought of it. This _is_ Hades we're talking about here."

An awkward silence took over as they ran out of fuel for that particular topic of conversation. Pit got up and went to the chariot to find the water they'd brought, complaining that he was thirsty. The chariot was some distance away. Viridi, watching Pit's retreating form, decided to take the opportunity without Pit to talk to Dart about the past couple weeks.

"So, um, _Dart_" she said, making an effort to not call him Pittoo, "are you happy you went to Skyworld?"

He looked thoughtfully at her. "Short answer? Yes." he replied. "You predicted that, didn't you?" he asked back. Viridi laughed a little.

"Didn't I say that right before I left you to go fetch Pit?" she asked rhetorically. She became serious again.

"I could see that while you weren't unhappy, you weren't happy either, and you were beginning to realize it too. You'd cheer up when I visited (although you'd act like you couldn't care less), then look sad when I left. The answer to that problem was obvious, but you refused to even consider going to Pit or Palutena because you were too proud to ask them for help again. And you probably knew that Pit especially would help you in a heartbeat. I know you were mad about my meddling, but I really thought you'd be better off with a push in a different direction."

Dart nodded. "Sorry I had such a bad attitude. And it has turned out well, so far."

"I'm glad for all of you." said Viridi sincerely. "How's Palutena liking the situation?"

Dart snorted slightly. "She acts like she's our mom. It's kind of funny. But I guess she's been doing that to Pit for a long time. It makes sense that she would consider his twin to be her kid as well by extension. I'm still not sure how I feel about it, though."

Viridi looked past Dart to see Pit approaching. "Look who's back…" Dart glanced behind him, then turned back and smirked.

"Did you know that Pit has a pair of lucky Aurum spaceship underpants?" Dart asked, very loudly.

"I DO NOT!" yelled Pit. Dart and Viridi laughed.

"Does Pit have any other embarrassing secrets you haven't told me about?" she asked, also loudly enough for the light angel to hear.

"Did I mention his habit of breaking into interpretive dance at odd moments?"

"Yeah, you mentioned that right after you told me about his overwhelming desire to become a professional mime."

"Pfft! Fail! As if Pit would aspire to do anything that required him to not make noise." Dart muttered to Viridi so Pit couldn't hear. She snorted in agreement.

Pit retaliated with "Don't make me tell her about your rabbit plushie!"

Dart went along with it and gasped dramatically. "You promised never to tell anyone!" he howled.

"It's pink!" Pit cried.

"It is _not_ pink! It's light red!" protested Dart.

"He goes to sleep with it every night." claimed Pit.

"It gets lonely!"

Suddenly, Pit got a surprised look on his face. "Guys! Guys! I feel an interpretive dance coming on!"

Dart and Viridi both lost it and began laughing hysterically. Pit quickly joined in.

After they calmed down, Viridi noticed something.

"Ooooh! Pit, you've got a loose feather! Can I pull it off?" she asked.

Pit frowned and looked over his shoulder, and found that she wasn't lying. One of his feathers was sticking out oddly.

"Ugh. Fine. But don't you dare pull out any others." he gave permission.

Viridi got a gleeful look on her face (how often does an opportunity like this come along?) and started to grab the feather at its base. Before she could pull it off, however, Pit suddenly flinched and made a bizarre, strangled sound. Dart, who was standing in front of Pit, stared at the light angel. Viridi was also confused, and pulled her hand away from Pit's wing after he jerked, leaving the feather.

Dart blinked. "Pit? What was that?"

Pit turned slightly red. "Um, nothing. My wings are sensitive."

Dart blinked again. He leaned to the side to look at Viridi. "You gonna pull that feather off?" he asked. She looked at Pit for a second, and tried to grab the feather again.

Pit tried to stifle a snort this time when she touched his wing, covering his mouth with his hand.

His brother continued to stare at him. Viridi had stopped again, trying to figure out what was wrong. Dart walked over to Pit's side, so he could see both Pit's face and his wings. While Viridi watched, he lightly touched Pit's wing where the loose feather was. Pit let loose a short laugh this time, flinching away again.

"Ok seriously guys, have you actually gotten the feather off yet?" Pit asked, craning his neck to see. Before he could say anything else, Dart grabbed Pit's arm to hold him still and poked his other wing in the same spot, to confirm his suspicions. Pit curled up and squeaked out "Stop it, Dart!"

He stopped, releasing Pit's arm, and Pit stood back up. They stared at each other while a comprehending look dawned on Viridi's face. Both she and Dart slowly began to smirk. Pit turned to face them and backed away, holding up his hands.

"No. Absolutely not. Stay away from me, both of you" he commanded firmly while trying to tuck his wings against his back.

The goddess and the dark angel looked at each other. Dart suddenly leaped forward and grabbed Pit's arm again, pushing him to the ground to restrain him so that he could reach the white wings. Viridi ran over too. Ignoring Pit's shouts of protest, they both began to poke his wings. The yelling quickly became hysterical laughter.

"He really wasn't kidding about the sensitive part" Dart said conversationally, grinning widely. Viridi giggled.

"Sorry Pit, this is just too good an opportunity to give up!" she apologized to their victim. He spluttered out a few half formed insults.

"I wonder…" she said and poked Pit's side.

Sure enough, he curled up and knocked Viridi's hand away, managing to gasp out another protest through his laughter. Suddenly Pit got an idea. He reached up and poked his brother's black wing in the same spot they were poking his wings. Dart instantly let go and rolled away to the side, then got up and started sprinting away. It was too late though, Pit tackled Dart, pinned him to the ground and started poking his wings. Viridi joined in, perfectly happy to target either angel. Despite his tough front, Dart is just as susceptible to tickling as Pit, and so he was laughing with the other two. Dart couldn't reach Pit's wings, so he just poked Pit in the side until all three were too exhausted to keep laughing. Pit let his brother up and lay down in the grass to catch his breath. Viridi did the same, and Dart simply rolled over onto his back and put his arms under his head. Several minutes passed in silence.

"That was absolutely ridiculous." Viridi commented after a while. Both boys snorted.

"I agree. Quite undignified for a goddess such as yourself." said Dart sagely.

"Oh shut up." She huffed, rolling onto her stomach. "You two weren't any better."

"We're teenagers. You really expect us to be dignified?" asked Pit.

"Are you saying I'm old?!" Viridi exclaimed. The other two raised their eyebrows.

"No. But you just did." Dart pointed out.

"Wha- but I- no, you-" she babbled. The angels cackled at her. Viridi stopped talking and glared at them, causing them to laugh even harder.

"Well, I learned something new today." she said loudly over their laughter. "The toughest warriors in Skyworld have _really_ ticklish wings." The twins rolled over and glared at her. Then Pit looked at Dart.

"Wait a second. I think there may have been a compliment hidden in there."

Dart nodded. "Yeah. She called us tough." Both boys fist pumped, grinning.

Viridi facepalmed and rolled her eyes. "Of course you two would turn that into a compliment. But as I was saying, Palutena would probably be interested in hearing about this." To both her and Dart's surprise, Pit simply snorted.

"Pfft! She knows that already. She raised me, remember?"

"I would also get great enjoyment out of telling your friend Magnus."

Pit scrambled to his feet. "Not cool, Viridi! He'd make fun of me to no end! If you tell him I'll… I'll mercilessly crush that daisy over there!" he cried, pointing dramatically to a flower a few feet away. Viridi gasped, covering her mouth with her hand.

"You wouldn't!" she whispered. Pit walked over to the daisy and lifted his foot over it.

"Allow me!" cried Dart, getting up and also running over to the daisy. "I've never met Magnus, but I don't really want anybody hearing about this."

"I would be remiss if I let such important information remain out of the public's hands." said Viridi, solemnly. "Even at the expense of that flower."

Dart slowly narrowed his eyes at her, then brought his foot down on the flower. He ground it into the dirt with his sandal. When he took his foot off of it Pit repeated his brother's actions. Then both stood defiantly with their arms crossed and smirks on their faces.

Suddenly, an identical flower to the one they had just stepped on sprang up just a foot from the first. The twins stared at it in surprise for a moment, then looked at Viridi's nonchalant face. She raised an eyebrow and said nothing. Pit and Dart looked at each other. About a hundred more flowers appeared just as suddenly as the first.

"We may be losing this battle." understated Pit.

"Ya think?" asked Dart, sarcastically. As he said this, he saw the flower he'd stepped on regrow until it looked as it had before. His eyes widened.

"Look out Pit! Zombie daisy!" he yelled, pointing at it. "It's after your brains! Oh wait… it can't be after something you don't have… it's after _my_ brains!"

Dart tried to run, but Pit stuck his foot out and tripped him for his comment about Pit not having a brain. Then Pit turned and ran, yelling back "Thanks for sacrificing yourself for me! I'll always remember you, bro!"

Dart didn't move when he fell, he just lay there, facedown. Pit stopped and looked back when he didn't get a response. He ran back and pulled his twin onto his lap (Dart kept his eyes closed but grinned) and wailed.

"Noooooo! Why?! How could this happen?! He was so young!" Pit leaned down and hugged him, sobbing dramatically.

Dart immediately opened his eyes and started trying to push Pit away. "Oi! No hugging! Get off me!"

Pit's sobbing turned to snickering and he tightened his hold. Viridi had begun laughing when Pit tripped Dart, but now she just smiled as she watched the dark angel try to escape his twin's affections.

"Has anyone ever mentioned to you two that you're adorable?" she asked in an offhand manner. Pit looked up and gave a little smile while Dart gave her an incredulous look.

"…Lady Palutena has said that. But I did used to be cute, so…" That was easy to believe. Pit did used to be smaller.

"But now I'm tough!" he yelled, raising his fist in the air. Viridi giggled at Pit's declaration while his brother took the opportunity to escape and shoved Pit over (he yelped pathetically) before sitting down a few feet away.

"There's no damn way you're attaching that label to me." Dart stated, pointing at the goddess. "If you feel the need to call someone cute, I give you permission to do it to Tough Guy over there." he continued, jerking his thumb at Pit.

Pit cut in before Viridi could respond "It's absolutely _adorable_ how Pittoo thinks I'll allow that. As his original, I give you my full support in calling him by endearing terms if you so choose."

"I thought we were past that name" spat Dart.

"You deserved it. Now shut up, or I'll give you another hug." threatened Pit. The dark angel snorted.

"How diabolical of you, Pit." he said.

"Whatever did I do for entertainment before you two came along?" wondered Viridi aloud.

"You _probably_ had a boring, unfulfilled life devoid of any happiness or color." answered Dart while Pit nodded in agreement. Viridi rolled her eyes and stood up.

"Fun though this has been, I must get back to my boring life. I actually have work to do, unlike you children." she said, sassing them while also regretful that she had to leave.

"Now wait a minute! I do work too!" protested Pit.

"Yeah, he works really hard at reducing the amount of food in Skyworld! He's practically unstoppable!" exclaimed Dart. He ducked the rock that Pit threw at him.

"Well don't let me stop your work. I must bid farewell to you flightless chickens. Say hello to Palutena for me, will you?"

And with that, Viridi waved and teleported away with her usual whirlwind of petals and leaves, snickering at the shouts of protest at being called chickens.

The boys stopped shouting once Viridi was gone, and they sat quietly for another minute.

"Now it's all boring." complained Pit. His twin shrugged.

"Whatever. We did kind of waste a lot of time. Now, wasn't the plan that I beat you in a race?" he asked.

The two called out to the unicorns and decided on a track.

Long story short, Pit won. Barely. He was incredibly modest about his victory. (He pointed and laughed at Dart while jumping up and down. Dart directed Lux to 'accidentally' knock Pit over.)

Thus, the day ended. Or rather, the chapter. This thing is seriously about 5,300 words.

* * *

**Yeah, this took a week longer than usual to get out. This is because the chapter still needed tweaking (I'm still not entirely satisfied) but I got sick. Reading for too long and typing made my head spin. It wasn't going to happen. Then, I stayed sick for literally a whole week. It sucked.**

**Aaaah Pit's in the new SSB! With new attacks!**


	9. Storms

**Because it took me three weeks last time, I am making up for it by posting this in just one week. Go me!**

* * *

The twins had the day off, and although Pit wanted to go do something fun with Dart, the dark angel declined, wanting instead to lie around doing nothing. Maybe read a book or something. They'd been running around either training or doing whatever tasks Palutena wanted them to do pretty much since Dart had arrived. Even their days off were spent with the unicorns or something. He just wanted to sit down for awhile. Pit was disappointed, but left and Dart heard the Lightning Chariot taking off a short time later, in the direction of the fields where they kept the animals. Pit liked to visit them from time to time and said he wouldn't be back until sundown.

Dart stayed in his bed for awhile, dozing, then eventually got hungry. He considered getting dressed, but decided to take his laziness all the way and stay in his pajamas. Before leaving to get food, he decided that he'd just sit in a corner and read a book, so he'd get something like a muffin that he could eat in his room.

Dart did just that, and when he returned to his room, he put a bunch of blankets and pillows on the floor in the corner. He grabbed a book and settled into the soft mound, then set the book to the side while he finished his breakfast.

He looked around aimlessly, allowing his thoughts to wander until his eyes found the window. It was sunny out, as was usual here. Dart wished it would storm here sometimes. Back when he was wandering the overworld, he always felt _alive_ in the middle of massive thunderstorms, loud enough that he couldn't even hear himself think, sometimes just standing out and getting soaking wet. He'd get jittery and with excitement and impatience whenever he saw dark clouds moving towards him with thunder rolling over the landscape.

He faced forward and closed his eyes, trying to picture the sight and sound of a thunderstorm. With a little effort, it came to him: dark gray clouds overhead, extending to the horizon. Rain pounding on the grass he had imagined himself sitting on. He could almost smell the rain. Lightning flashed nearby, followed almost instantly by the earsplitting crack. Dart smiled at the scene in his mind.

He sighed and opened his eyes after a minute or so. A ghost of the image stayed in his mind as he looked at the white walls of his room, like it was painted there.

Like a thunderstorm was painted there, on his bedroom walls.

Well, there's an idea.

Initially, Dart rejected it because he was sure it wouldn't be allowed. But come on, it's just the walls! He wasn't going to tear them down or anything. Now that the idea was in his head, the book he was going to read held no interest for him. He thought further on the subject while munching on the muffin.

By the time he had finished eating the food he'd brought with him, he'd made up his mind to try it. The question was, should he ask Palutena or not? If he asked her, she may forbid him. If he didn't, then by the time she found out the deed would be done, and she may find it easier to just leave it be. But, she may also approve, and it would be devious to go behind her back anyway. He wasn't sure how she would react to the idea. As he considered the logistics, he realized he'd have to involve her, anyway. He didn't know where to find paint.

…For that matter, he didn't know where to find Palutena, either. He decided to start by taking his plate back to the kitchen. It occurred to him that he should get dressed before trying to locate Palutena, but he was already almost at the kitchen. As it happened, he wasn't faced with the challenge of finding the goddess. She was in the kitchen, enjoying a hot mug of tea.

"Pi- I mean, Dart! I didn't expect to see you here. I heard the Lightning Chariot leave a little while ago and assumed the two of you had left."

Dart would have glared at the slip with his name but he was somewhat surprised at finding her here… he began to curse himself for not changing out of his pajamas. If Pit ever asked about things like this, he'd laugh and say he didn't care what the goddess of Light thought of him. In practice though, he'd really rather not stand around chatting in his pj's.

"No- er- sorry about the pajamas… I decided I felt like being lazy today." Palutena smiled at him.

"Well, you don't bother to sugarcoat anything. Lazy indeed." she teased him.

"Um, I wanted to ask you something." Dart stated awkwardly, wanting to get the request out of the way.

"Yes?"

"I was kind of wondering… would you object to me painting my room?" he asked hopefully.

"Of course not, Dart! Were you planning to do that now?"

He nodded. "I need paint though."

Palutena finished her tea and stood up, leaving the mug in the sink with the plate Dart had put in there. "Well, let's go see what we're working with. What design did you have in mind?" She began walking towards his room and beckoned to him to follow. Dart hesitated, feeling unsure about how much he wanted her input. He decided to just go with it and see what happened.

"I want a thunderstorm on my walls." Palutena raised an eyebrow.

"What? I like them and we don't get them here." Dart defended.

"Ok, but are you going to want to always have that on your wall?" Dart stopped walking as he considered this.

"…Maybe not." He admitted.

"Well, you can still put your thunderstorm on your walls. I can give you options. Sometimes I get tired of the décor in my rooms, but I don't want to waste time manually changing it. I use a small bit of magic to do that." She reassured him with a smile. "So you could actually paint the walls into as many different designs as you want, and if you want to you can change from one to another. Or you could make a new one."

He nodded and they continued their trek to Dart's room. When they got there, Palutena waited until Dart invited her in to enter, then she stood and took in the room. She looked amused at the pile of blankets in the corner. Dart caught the look.

"It's a comfortable place to read" he mumbled, gathering the bundle and placing it on his bed. Palutena just chuckled.

Before she addressed the subject of paint, she waved her hand and all the furniture vanished, leaving the room completely bare. Dart was caught by surprise.

"That seems handy." He commented.

"Yes. Now I assume you'll be wanting a base color, then paint the rest on top."

"I've actually got no idea what I'm doing here. I was just going to play by ear."

"Ok. So let's work with the thunderstorm idea. Describe what you want."

Dart thought about it.

"I want it dark, but not too dark. Like it's during the day. No landscape or anything, just clouds and rain and lightning."

"That sounds simple enough. So, a lot of gray."

Dart nodded. He jumped suddenly. Palutena had flicked her hand again and the walls turned dark gray, startling the angel.

"Oh, I'm sorry. I probably should have warned you." She apologized.

"It's ok. So what about actually p-" Dart was cut off as a paintbrush was shoved under his nose. He stared crosseyed at it for a moment before taking it from the goddess. She was holding one too.

"You don't mind if I help, do you?" she asked with a grin. Dart definitely hadn't had this in mind. But she seemed like she really wanted to.

"Um, sure. If you want to." He wondered if she was pushing anything important aside to help him. She apparently guessed what he was thinking.

"There's nothing pressing for me to pay attention to today, so I can take the day off too. I haven't ever really tried doing this, so this should be fun."

"Paint?"

Palutena approached a wall and swiped the clean brush over it, leaving an arc of gray paint where it had touched.

"Just picture the color you want, the brush will make it."

"What about my clothes? If I'd known that I'd be hanging out with you today, or painting, I'd have changed…" She frowned at her clothing. She fuzzed briefly and when she came back into focus she was wearing clothing more suited to painting, plain clothing that fit more loosely.

"Don't worry about it, unless you really want to change. I'm not offended by your clothes, Pit does the same thing on his lazy days off." Dart blinked.

"Geez. That strikes at the oddest moments." he commented.

"What does?" Palutena wondered.

"Someone telling me that Pit does the same thing as whatever I'm doing at the time."

"I guess you're more like him than you thought. But I thought that a long time ago."

"What do you mean?" Dart asked. He moved to a wall and experimentally swiped the brush over it. The result was similar to the demonstration Palutena had shown, but with a darker gray. He touched the brush with his finger and it got paint on it.

"Well, back when you were… created, everybody thought you were polar opposites. Coloring, personality, allegiances. Attitude." She began painting dark gray clouds on the walls, using large rounded strokes and varying grays.

"Well, I corrected everybody on the allegiances front very quickly." reminded Dart. He was also creating clouds. Really, this project wasn't very difficult or complicated. It wouldn't take long to finish.

"Yes," agreed Palutena, "and it wasn't long before I noticed that your personality wasn't all that different either. You were just in a different situation than Pit. And it seems you inherited a lot of his mannerisms too."

"Gotta wonder, though. I was created by the Mirror of Truth. What on earth made anybody think that it would create a truthful clone of _Pit_ that was evil? He's, like, the furthest thing from evil."

Palutena paused in her painting for a moment, resting her chin in one hand.

"I think you'll find, over time, that Pit's a little more… mixed than he seems at first. That is, he's actually fairly normal for a kid." Dart paused, looking at the goddess, who had resumed painting.

"How so?" he asked.

"Well, I raised him. He was not a perfect little angel, pardon the pun. While Pit was definitely generally a good kid, he did misbehave sometimes. But he was taught from the beginning to fill the role he does now, he had to be or I wouldn't be able to trust him as much as I do. So he acts very responsible and does his work. But he's always had a bit of mischief to him, and I think that it's still there, buried under the responsibility."

She paused, looking somewhat sad at her last statement.

"Unfortunately, although he was always happy with the way things were, I know that living with only myself and the centurions as companions has stifled his childhood somewhat."

Palutena looked carefully at Dart.

"This is one small part of why I'm glad you exist and want you here. Pit's never had any equals, no _friends_. You are his sibling. Perhaps you can help him. It's good that I can rely on Pit, but I hate to see him spend all his time either working or alone. He doesn't really have fun. Like I said earlier, he's got a spark of mischief. I personally think he'll be a better person for having that spark fanned a little, but my position and relationship towards him prevent me from encouraging him myself."

Dart considered this.

"Are you saying you want me to get him in trouble?" he asked carefully. She gave him a little smile.

"Well, when you put it that way…As the goddess of Light, I am obligated to heartily object. I can't believe I'm actually saying this, but… as someone who wants Pit- and you- to be happy and enjoy your lives, I say go for it, but… make sure I'm not around. And, I'm sure I don't have to tell you that there are limits, but I wouldn't be saying this if I thought you would cross the line. Also, just generally don't go too overboard."

Dart grinned. "This'll be fun."

"That's what I'm hoping for. Without you two wrecking too much havoc. I'm already cringing."

"Yeah. Pit needs more fun in his life. I've noticed that in my time here."

"If you'd noticed that, why didn't you hang out with Pit today?" Palutena asked offhand, as if she already knew the answer. Which she did, she just wanted to see Dart get all defensive.

"Because I need my lazy time. I was originally planning to sit in that corner and read a book… anyway. I hang out with Pit all the time." She laughed softly at the answer.

After that, the two kept conversation to a minimum as they concentrated on getting the scenery how Dart wanted it. Sometime after lunch, he noticed something odd about an area Palutena was working on.

Dart had turned from where he was painting to move to another space and his eyes panned over the goddess and her painting. In the short second it took to do this, he saw two bright flashes of rainbowy color that made him do a double take. But when he looked at her again, he saw nothing.

After staring for a few seconds, he looked away again and saw the flash of rainbow again, in his peripheral vision. His eyes snapped back to Palutena again and he stared for longer, the color having vanished again. Then Dart noticed something odd. The goddess was painting in large, sweeping arcs, but no color was appearing where she was painting. As if she knew he was staring, she turned her head and looked at him.

"Am I seeing things, or…" Dart trailed off, suspecting from her knowing little smile that he wasn't seeing things, and she knew exactly what was causing his confusion.

"Look at this spot, and don't look away from it." she commanded, gesturing to an area some distance from where she was painting.

Dart followed her advice, and gasped in surprise. A partial rainbow had appeared where she was standing. As he experimented with looking back and forth, he found if he was looking directly at it, it was invisible. But it showed up in the sides of his vision if he looked elsewhere.

"Wha… how did you…" then he gestured wildly at it, looking rather amusing since he was looking one way and waving his arms wildly in a completely different direction.

"I am a goddess, you know. I thought it would be a nice touch. A hidden light in your storm."

"What, trying to be philosophical?" Dart asked somewhat sarcastically. He wasn't in a particularly philosophical mood.

She shrugged.

"Not if you don't want it to be. I just liked the rainbow idea, but didn't know if you would. So I thought you'd like just about anything presented in this form. But if you want to find deep meaning in this, I'm sure we can make something up."

Dart snickered several times before dissolving into laughter. Palutena joined in.

"You're not supposed to _admit_ that you're making it up!"

"So, do you like it?" she asked after they'd calmed down.

"Yeah, it's pretty cool. You're right, having it only show up when you're not looking at it does make it more awesome."

And with that, both went back to their work, Palutena finishing the rainbow before moving back to the clouds. They painted the floor and the ceiling too, don't ask me to go into detail on how they did that. Gods and angels do whut they want. After the clouds were painted in, Dart went through and added several streaks of lightning, then both stood back to admire their work.

"I think we did a good job of it." Palutena commented, her hands on her hips as she looked over the room.

"Yeah, you can almost imagine you're floating in a thunderstorm." Dart agreed, his arms crossed.

"Almost, huh?" murmured the goddess. "Close your eyes a second." she commanded the dark angel.

He looked questioningly at her, then complied and waited. After a few seconds, he heard a noise that confused him. His skin also felt a strange sensation. He frowned and wrinkled his eyebrows. Before he could puzzle it out, Palutena told him to open his eyes again.

When he opened his eyes, his jaw dropped. His storm had come to life. The noise he was hearing was rain, and the sensation was water hitting his skin, but without getting him wet at all. The clouds were roiling and lightning streaked seemingly in the distance, with the crack following soon after. He found himself smiling.

Dart ran forward a couple of steps with his arms out, laughing delightedly. He turned around, still smiling and found that although he hadn't noticed her at first, Palutena was still there as well. It looked like both were hovering in the middle of an endless storm.

"What is this? How did you do it?" Dart asked her. He could see the rainbow hiding at the edges of his vision again, and was glad it had followed him here.

"It's just a bit of illusion. You're still standing in your room, and you'll hit the wall if you go much further. If you manage to find the door, the illusion will not be there outside. Do you like it?"

He laughed again, still feeling rather giddy. "I love it! This is amazing!"

Dart experimentally walked to a wall and saw that Palutena was right. It was like he was in a glass box, able to see through but not to escape. Then he found the door and while the door remained invisible, the hallway outside was not when the door was opened and it looked very odd indeed.

After confirming these bits of information, Dart and Palutena both simply stood there and experienced the living artwork. Finally, Dart turned to the goddess.

"Thank you for this. Letting me do this, helping me. And this has got to be one of the most amazing things I've seen, even if it isn't real."

"You're welcome, Dart. I enjoyed spending time with you, and I like to see you happy."

He squinted at her. "Are you just trying to win me over?" he asked her, looking suspicious.

Palutena burst out laughing. After a second, so did Dart.

"Of course I'm trying to win you over."

He laughed even harder at that.

"I suppose that was a stupid question."

"It's a little of both. I want you to be happy, and I also want you to like me."

He nodded. "That sounds reasonable. And blunt."

Right after this they both heard a familiar voice approaching.

"Dart? Lady Palutena? What are you-" Pit and the doorway appeared seemingly out of nowhere, then his eyes widened. He stumbled in surprise when another crack sounded from the lightning and he scrambled out and slammed the door.

"I'm going to go to a hot spring. Things better not still be weird when I get back." Pit announced from behind the closed door. They heard his retreating footsteps.

"…Huh?"

"Pit has never liked thunderstorms." Palutena explained. "I must admit, I did wonder if your desire to paint a thunderstorm on your walls stereotypically indicated you were depressed or something. But they really do make you happy, don't they?" He grinned.

"Yeah. I don't really know why, but I get excited when a thunderstorm comes along."

"Ok, let's turn this off for now."

The room returned to its normal state, the storm becoming paint on the walls again. Palutena turned to Dart and handed him an obviously magical wooden slate marked with a few designs.

"You can use this to switch different things. This one will let you flip through your different designs, when you have more…"

She proceeded to explain how Dart could use the slate to change how his room looked, make the furniture vanish when he needed it to, make a new design, and turn the illusion on and off when he wanted to. After he had it all down, he got the furniture back and put the slate in a drawer. A thought occurred to him.

"You know, once he gets over the shock, Pit's going to want to do the same thing."

"Hm. You're probably right about that. Here…" Another wooden sheet appeared, but this glowed slightly with a white light. Also, she was holding two more paintbrushes identical to the two they had been using all day.

"Give these to Pit when he starts complaining that he wants to paint his room too. You'll notice that his is glowing. Yours is also slightly different now, so you don't mix them up."

He nodded and took them, thanking her. Palutena excused herself and left while Dart left to go find a hot spring to get the paint off of himself. When he got back, he could sense that Pit was back in his own room. Dart didn't go in there, figuring Pit would show up soon enough.

He sat on his bed and almost immediately heard Pit get up and walk out of his room into the hallway. The door opened a crack and a pair of blue eyes appeared sideways, glaring suspiciously into the room. They looked around briefly before settling on Dart's smirking face. The blue eyes narrowed.

"_What _happened in here?" came Pit's muffled voice. He didn't open the door any further.

"We painted in here. I think it looks awesome." Dart said, matter-of-factly.

Pit finally opened the door and carefully stepped inside, closing the door behind him and looking around.

"I guess, but why'd you have to do this? Couldn't you have done something…nicer?"

"I can change it when I want. It doesn't have to be permanent."

"Wha- Is there something over there?" Pit had spotted the rainbow, sort of.

"Yeah, Palutena put a rainbow over there. Don't look directly at it or you won't see it." Pit looked to the side.

"Huh. That's right, Lady Palutena was in here earlier when it wasn't, for some reason, your room."

"Oh, it was still my room. But with a really cool illusion."

"If you say so. It could be put to much better use though."

"Well, I can make a different scene."

Pit turned to look at him, crossing his arms.

"So whatever happened to you doing nothing but napping all day?" he asked, looking accusingly at Dart.

"Don't get all in a huff. I was going to, but then this occurred to me and the idea wouldn't leave me alone. You were already gone by then."

Pit sighed, then sat cross legged on the bed next to his twin.

"Alright, alright. So Lady Palutena helped you do this?" he asked curiously. Dart nodded.

"I was kind of surprised. I didn't expect her to allow this, let alone actually paint the walls with me. Then she added the invisible rainbow and made it seem real."

He got up, fetched the slate that would toggle the illusion (as Palutena had mentioned, it now had a slight black aura around it, marking it as his), then sat back down and showed it to Pit.

"Check this out." The furniture all vanished, although they were still sitting on the bed so it was still there, and the storm came back to life, sound effects and all. Pit cringed a little at the lightning, but looked around.

"That is pretty cool. I can feel the rain. And- hey!" Pit laughed a little. "The rainbow's still there, but it looks real now too! Only when I'm not looking at it though, of course."

Dart just smiled in response.

"It's also a bit like flying." Pit commented.

"That is definitely a good thing for us."

They sat and watched it for a little longer, but Pit really didn't like the thunder so Dart turned it off.

Pit frowned. "How come I don't have this in my room?" he asked.

"You never came up with the idea, I guess." answered Dart.

"No, it never did occur to me." admitted Pit. "But now that you've done it…"

Dart chuckled a little in amusement.

"We figured you might feel that way."

He got up and retrieved the lighter slate and paintbrushes, then dumped them into Pit's hands. Dart explained how to use them, then the two spent the remainder of the day planning out more designs for both of their rooms, to be created some other day.

* * *

**Yay, some interaction with Palutena. And I want to clear something up about Pit's age. I know that Pit's supposed to be more than 25 years old, blah blah. I'm not going with that, for many reasons that all have to do with my sanity. He's in his younger teen years, I'm not sure what age exactly. So now you know. I may or may not try to come up with a backstory or origin for Pit at some point in the future, since this kind of goes against canon. Although correct age or not he really doesn't have one, does he?**

**Oh yeah, another tweaked detail. The angels can both read. I don't much feel like dealing with illiteracy, not to mention I can't honestly say what it would be like to learn how to read. I don't exactly remember learning because it happened when I was a very small child. So my trying to write that would kind of be a lie.**

**I still own nothing. Haven't mentioned that in awhile, have I?  
**


	10. Black and White

**This chapter has two purposes. One is as a tribute to an amazing game. This purpose is the main one, expect to see quite a lot of it. If you think B&W is weird... well I didn't make it. I just think it's really awesome.**

**The other is to develop an actual dark/evil side to Pit. I know, Dart is supposed to be his dark side and all but as I'm sure you've all gathered by now, I don't buy it. Let's see Pit actually having an 'I don't give a crap anymore' side to his personality. But in a completely harmless manner.**

**Oh, and a wild computer has appeared! I have absolutely no desire to explain how it got there. If pressed, I will fall back on various references to technology and the internet found in the game and in the animes.**

* * *

Late one night, Pit was up staring at a computer screen. He occasionally muttered at it under his breath and clicked madly. His twin was trying to sleep, but he could hear Pit and couldn't get to sleep. It wasn't the noise, it was curiosity. Finally Dart grumbled expletives to himself and climbed out of bed, dragging a blanket with him. He stalked out, reflecting that putting a door between their rooms might be a worthwhile venture since they went between the rooms a lot. Then again, it would make it easier for Pit to come over. He really only wanted it to make things easier for himself.

Dart barged into Pit's room without so much as a 'hello' or even a 'screw you, shut up so I can sleep'. He strode up to Pit's desk and peered over his twin's shoulder to see what was keeping him up. He could make no sense of what he saw.

Basically, it was a bird's eye view of a computer generated landscape, with ocean and various trees. What was quite unusual was a large hand moving around, grabbing the ground and pulling the landscape around. There were small figures walking around. Dart stared at this for several moments.

"…what the hell is this?" he demanded to know grumpily.

"Black and White." was Pit's simple answer, which really didn't tell Dart what it was.

"Ok?..."

Pit rolled his eyes. "It's a game. You get to be a god and rule over your domain. There's a story mode too, so there's somewhat more to it than that but that's basically it."

Dark blinked in surprise as he watched the hand pick up a boulder and drop it on what he had identified as a person.

"Wait, did you just kill that person?" he questioned.

"Yep."

"Um…well…why?"

Pit shrugged, looking uncharacteristically unconcerned about the subject of dying humans.

"You caught me at a sadistic moment. It's gonna last a while longer, so yeah."

Dart raised an eyebrow.

"I wasn't aware you had sadistic moments, Pit."

Pit nodded. "Viridi would be proud. It's a good thing I'm not actually a god."

"So, wait. You just killed that person for no reason?"

"There was a reason." Pit defended. "They sound funny when they scream."

Dart unplugged the earphones. At that moment, however, a yellow light appeared and a voice came through, saying 'This is my land'. Pit muttered something about an obvious giant yellow ring telling him that.

"You gonna explain that?" Dart asked.

"That light was another god, Khazar. He's supposed to be my ally. He's a good guy and all, but really obnoxious. When you fly over his land he shows up, gets in your face, and spouts some random line at you. Same with Lethys, who's an enemy, although his voice is far more annoying to listen to and his lines are generally pathetic threats."

"I also couldn't help but notice that although he said 'this is my land' the subtitle said 'I feel the need to state the obvious'."

Pit smirked. "That's one of my ways of having more fun. That's not the only subtitle I messed with. Observe."

Pit zoomed out, and three colored rings appeared encompassing different areas of land. He zoomed in on the yellow one. Once again the yellow light appeared, and said 'Help me friend. You must help me'. The subtitle said 'Help me friend. Lethys called me names!'

Before Dart could question Pit about these oddly named characters, another voice loudly said 'disciple breeder' and he paused.

"Did that thing just say what I think it said? Do I want to know?"

"It lets you micromanage villages. You can control the population. If you want it to grow, you can create disciples that go around and…well…breed. There are other kinds of disciples too."

The voice spoke the same phrase again.

"But I don't see you doing anything of the sort. Why does that woman keep saying it?"

Pit frowned. The woman's voice said 'disciple breeder' several times in a row and Pit's frown became more pronounced.

"The Creature is petting villagers again." He stated in an irritated voice.

"What?!"

Pit hit a key and the camera flew to a…giant, bipedal tiger. It was holding a villager, but when the camera approached it, the tiger tossed the villager over its shoulder (the person screamed and flailed) and pointed happily at the camera. A few bars showed up labeled things like 'hunger' 'energy'.

"That's my Creature." Pit explained. "Every god has one, and you can train it to do just about anything. I taught mine to be nice to villagers, because having him kill them is counterproductive. This way I don't have to keep a constant eye on him. Unfortunately, he likes to pick them up and pet them as a sign of affection and some genius decided that it would be a great idea if he could turn villagers into breeders when he does this."

Pit smirked and petted Dart's black hair briefly. Dart made a face at the implied inappropriate joke, but didn't react to it except to slap Pit's hand away.

"If you're teaching him to be nice, shouldn't you punish him for throwing that villager?" he pointed out. Pit shook his head.

"Technically speaking, he wasn't trying to hurt the person. If I punished him, he'd associate it with something else. No point in trying."

"He'd associate it with something else…This is a computer game?" Dart mused.

"The AI on the Creatures is incredible. I once taught a Creature to take over villages for me when I can't reach them. I've never bothered to do more complicated things, but they can do a lot more."

Pit hit the key that made labels show up over each villager, and several showed that they had become breeder disciples. Dart saw one female disciple approach a man.

"Wait, are they seriously going to do that right there in public?" he asked uncertainly.

Pit rolled his eyes. "Ok, do you really think they'd make it explicit? Watch."

The villagers hugged each other and kissed.

"Now you know. Touching leads to babies." Pit stated solemnly.

An amusing thought occurred to Dart. "We should totally act all innocent and go ask Palutena or Viridi where babies come from."

Pit smirked. "That wouldn't work with Lady Palutena. Unless you tried to convince her that you didn't get that particular bit of knowledge when you were created. See, when I was younger I asked her exactly that. No, I'm not telling you what she said. If we play our cards right, we might convince Viridi of our ignorance. But she might kill us once she realizes we've duped her."

Returning his attention to his game, Pit went to a certain building in the village and picked up weird boxes and dropped them on each other, creating bigger boxes. He placed these on the ground where they became transparent houses, which people then carried wood to and started building.

Pit suddenly headed over a portion of water and several villages where the people had yellow labels (his own villagers had red labels). He went to another building with the boxes which he vaguely mentioned were called scaffolds. He combined three, then headed to another when the yellow light showed up again and said something about 'fighting for the land you see below you'. Dart laughed when he saw that Pit had changed this subtitle to read 'I'm fighting my alternate personalities'. Pit ignored this and took three more scaffolds and flew back to his other village.

"Wait. Were those that other god's scaffolds?" Dart asked, confused.

"Yeah."

"He didn't seem to mind that you were robbing him blind." he observed.

"Sometimes I sit there and watch him put wood in to make more scaffolds, then steal them as they're made."

Dart stared at Pit.

"Ok, who are you and what have you done with Pit?" he demanded to know.

"What? It's an awesome game. Stealing scaffolds from Khazar is part of the strategy. Although I'm not really interested in serious progression right now. Like I said, you caught me at a sadistic moment."

Pit picked up a large rock and went back to the his ally's village. He dropped it on one of the houses, which broke with a shattering sound. A little guy sitting on a cloud (Pit explained that this was your conscience) came out and protested the destruction, while a small devil flew around cheering it on. Pit snickered. After a few moments, the other god came over and said 'Your behavior is inexplicable'. Dart snickered at this too.

A yellow spiral flashed on the ground and a large net appeared over the village, at which point Pit laughed loudly.

"Look at him, trying to protect his village from me! You know, it takes worshipers to maintain that shield. Let's go fix that."

Pit panned over to a large temple nearby, where many people were dancing around an altar. He moved his hand in a spiral, then up and down several times. The voice proclaimed that Pit had created a miraculous fireball.

Which he then threw at the dancing villagers, cackling. The devil came out again and laughed too.

"I bet he rues the day he taught me how to create fireballs." Pit commented while still laughing at the screaming villagers. He laughed even harder when the other god came over and angrily demanded to know what Pit was doing.

"Pit, what on earth is wrong with you?" Dart was also laughing both at the scene (it was kind of funny) and at Pit.

"I take out any violent impulses I have on virtual people! It's funny! Leave me alone! 99% of the time, I'm really nice to them. Right now, I feel like causing them pain, and then laughing at it."

"Well, I'm gonna hang around for a bit and watch. This is hilarious."

Dart found another chair and sat down with his blanket around him to watch Pit, who was throwing fireballs at the village now. He suddenly started laughing again when Pit paused in his rain of destruction (His good conscience was berating him for murdering villagers) to steal another scaffold that had just been created and set it back down in his own village. He went to the second place with scaffolds and stole all three, and was about to return to his village when he paused, thoughtful. He went to his ally's burning village and started positioning the scaffolds.

"…You guys might need a graveyard…"

Dart fell out of his chair laughing. Pit glanced down at him with a small grin on his face.

"Graveyards make the villagers ignore dead people." he explained. "Otherwise they waste time crying over them. As you can see, there are a bunch of dead people here."

"You're the one that killed them!"

"Well, I need them to build back up so I can do it again later."

"Wow. You're a really terrible person sometimes, Pit." Dart pulled himself back onto his chair and wrapped his blanket around himself again.

"I warned you."

"I'm gonna have to try this for myself."

Pit waved his hand dismissively. "Later. I'm still feeling bloodthirsty."

He went to another temple with people dancing outside. He went inside, and navigated to a room with large portraits. He used one to load another save file, which placed him in a different land.

"I have an excellent opportunity in this world. I have a case of lazy villagers."

"They can get lazy?"

"Yup. Really long story. See all these?"

Pit hit the status key and labels showed up over all the villagers again, showing what they were doing. Many were 'chilling out', but Pit was pointing to the ones labeled 'hiding at the worship site'.

"They're supposed to be worshiping me. So I can cast miracles. I feed them, they give me power. But these aren't. They're eating the food, but not worshiping me. It's because the village, as a whole, has become lazy."

Pit went to the village and raised a pillar, and a bell rang and the people all ran to the temple.

"I've sent them all there. But look…"

Most of them were arriving, then hiding instead of actually dancing.

"I know what to do about these lazy scumbags…"

Pit created a fireball and dropped it right on top of the mass of 'hiding' villagers. He laughed wickedly as the people started screaming and running out in all directions, on fire. They quickly burned to death, and there was a large circle of burned corpses.

**A/N: I don't need to describe this. You know my profile picture? It's a screenshot of exactly that. Those little bright dots are flaming villagers. I killed them for not worshiping me. The text near the bottom is my good conscience complaining about my evil behavior.**

The spectacle was soon over, and Pit went back into the temple. He loaded the file again without saving. Dart was confused as to why he was going back until Pit sent the villagers to the temple again and dropped another fireball on them. Pit laughed hysterically at them, then repeated it.

"It just doesn't get old!" he chortled, randomly picking up a flaming villager and dropping him in the ocean. Then he cackled as the person drowned.

"Remind me never to piss you off…" commented Dart.

He was more amused by Pit's behavior than what was happening on the screen. Although he was also slightly disturbed at seeing Pit not only completely unconcerned about people dying, but thinking it was hysterically funny. He wasn't sure what to make of it.

"Those guys deserved it!" Pit insisted. "Trying to get a free ride! The nerve of them!"

He reloaded the first file and headed to his ally's village again.

"So why does this god deserve it?" Dart asked.

"He keeps stating the obvious." Pit answered.

"That's a punishable offense?!"

"Oh be quiet." Pit huffed. "I'm killing his villagers, thus irritating him. Not killing him. And I still want to kill people. I'd rather kill his than mine."

Pit started tossing a steady stream of his ally's villagers into the ocean to drown. Khazar came over and welcomed Pit to his realm.

"Wait. Why isn't he yelling at you?"

"Khazar's an AI god." Pit explained. "Tossing individual villagers around doesn't usually trigger a defense response from him. Fireballing the village does. As long as I'm not throwing too many at a time (or hitting houses with the villagers' bodies), he doesn't notice anything. This cliff here is really handy for instantly murdering villagers."

Pit demonstrated by flinging a small child at the cliff. The boy actually survived, but only barely based on his life percentage. Pit made the miracle spiral again, then drew a heart. The voice declared that he had created a miracle heal. Pit used this to heal the child.

"That's…um…nice of you, Pit."

"Don't compliment me yet." Pit advised.

Pit picked up the boy and dropped him on the temple's altar. A scream rang out.

"There. He just paid for that healing miracle."

"Wait. What? Where'd he go?" Dart searched, but the boy had vanished.

"I sacrificed him." Pit stated calmly.

"You WHAT?!"

"I sacrificed him for more power." he elaborated.

Dart pushed away from the table.

"I'm going to avoid you now, you power hungry fiend!"

Pit frowned at him. "But bro! I'd _never _sacrifice you for more power!" he insisted.

"I don't know what to believe about you anymore, Pit!"

"Ok, I might sacrifice you for a donut…" Pit said contemplatively.

"Hm, a donut sounds good right now…"

"I'm glad you agree, Dart."

Pit gave him an unhinged smirk and stood up, ready to grab him. Dart scrambled to the door and flung it open, running away from Pit conveniently in the direction of the kitchen. The pair ran past several confused centurions before Dart almost collided with one. Pit didn't see him stop since it was around a corner and he grabbed his brother's shoulders in an attempt to stay upright. The attempt failed and both fell and collapsed into a pile. They both cursed and elbowed each other as they untangled themselves and stood up.

Dart smirked at the staring centurion and took off running again, Pit hot on his heels. They were stopped short again when they encountered Palutena speaking to a pair of guards. Once again Pit couldn't stop himself in time and both angels went down, yelling incoherently. Palutena raised an eyebrow and crossed her arms, waiting for an explanation that she fully expected to be amused by. They both sat up and correctly interpreted her pose.

"Pit's trying to sacrifice me for a donut." Dart accused, pointing at the light angel. Palutena blinked.

"Oh. Well, that makes perfect sense. It's a good thing Pit doesn't have to sacrifice anybody to get a donut though, there are some in there." she replied, pointing to the kitchen as Dart got up and brushed himself off.

She addressed Pit. "You can sacrifice Dart some other time."

Pit nodded energetically, standing up. "Then I can go repair the Mirror of Truth and make a Pit-three to sacrifice for some hot chocolate!"

"And who do you have to sacrifice to get some ice cream around here?" asked Dart as he trotted off to the kitchen. Pit quickly followed.

"Didn't you boys eat dinner?" asked Palutena, following after them. Pit's face poked around the corner, a donut in his mouth.

"Yeah… we're hungry again…"

The goddess rolled her eyes while the centurions silently grinned at their captain's childish behavior.

"Well, it's pretty late already. Don't stay up too much longer."

"But we have tomorrow off!" protested Dart, pulling a few ice cubes out. "We can sleep in!"

"So you do." mused Palutena. "Well don't eat all the chocolate ice cream."

"Aw…" Pit complained. "Wait, there's a ton of chocolate ice cream."

"Yes, but I wouldn't put it past you to eat it all." she teased.

Pit pouted and she laughed and ruffled his hair. While Pit was distracted, Dart snuck up to him and dropped the ice cubes down his shirt. Pit yelped and twisted to try to get them out. When he got them, he flung them at his laughing twin. By this point, the goddess was laughing at both of them. The two centurion guards were looking in and snickering, too. Pit glared at everybody.

"How mature of all of you." said Pit haughtily with his nose in the air.

He held this pose for awhile, not noticing as Dart loaded a spoon with chocolate ice cream and took aim for Pit's face. Pit somehow didn't even flinch when the ice cream hit him smack on the nose, but continued to maintain a dignified air even as ice cream dripped down his face. The spectacle made everyone laugh even harder.

"The things I endure for your amusement…" commented Pit serenely.

Still laughing, Dart offered Pit a towel to wipe off his face.

"Why, thank you…"

Pit ignored the towel and grabbed the front of Dart's pajama shirt and used it to wipe the ice cream off. Dart didn't even bother to get mad. He just kept laughing. Even Pit was grinning by this point. After a minute, Dart began to make hot chocolate to make things even with Pit.

After bidding the angels goodnight, Palutena left and the centurions returned to their post. When it was done, Pit accepted the drink very gravely, but snorted into it when Dart poked his wing on the way by. They grinned a bit at each other, Pit's with a slight threat to not try it again or else.

They both finished their drinks, then loaded up with snacks and headed back to Pit's room. Really, they should just put a kitchen right next to their rooms. Palutena would never go for that, of course. Both had to find clean clothes, as theirs had ice cream on them.

Back at Pit's game, Dart was watching Pit take in the state of his world. He glanced back at his temple.

"Hm, I seem to be neutral…"

"Neutral?"

"My alignment. It can be good, evil, or neither depending on how you behave. The scenery changes to match. Right now, I'm about neutral."

"Didn't you just go on a killing spree?" Dart questioned. "You should be completely evil by now."

"I started out 100% good."

"Oh. So you weren't lying when you said you're nice most of the time…"

"Well, I wasn't. But it's a little more complicated than that. The programmers made it impossibly difficult to actually be considered good. I've played by being nice and taking care of my villages through the whole game and been considered moderately evil by the end. I got tired of it and changed a few values in my save file. Here, I'll show you."

Pit saved and exited the game, and found the files he wanted (it involves the registry).

"See this value here? That holds my alignment. I just change it like so… then start up again."

They waited while the game loaded, then Pit showed off his newly positive alignment.

"See? There are rainbows everywhere, everything looks brighter, and my temple different looking. At night, the sky is all colorful."

"So, you're cheating." summed up the dark angel.

"I like to call it 'correcting'" Pit countered. "Seriously, it's a flaw. I _am_ good the vast majority of the time, but the game never believes it. Now, back to being evil…"

Pit threw a bunch of rocks in a small crevasse and tossed a fireball on them. For some reason, the rocks ignited. He picked one up and headed back to Khazar's villages. All he had to do was hold the burning rock over something and the object would catch fire. In this manner, Pit had torched the entire village in less than a minute. After he was done there, he fetched a new rock since the one he was using had cooled down, and went to a new village and torched it quickly too. He made sure to hold the rock over as many individual villagers as he could, and laughed when they screamed and ran, setting other things on fire. Dart just shook his head in amusement.

After awhile, Pit got tired of just lighting people on fire, and started flinging them at the cliff. He often threw them until they were an inch from death then healed them. Once or twice he let them go after this, but more often he would laugh maniacally and kill them after healing them. After awhile of throwing villagers at the cliff, he started skipping them across the ocean and trying to beat his record. Sometimes Pit was merciful and threw them to kill instantly, sometimes he simply let them drown then tossed their corpses across the ocean while giggling madly. Dart couldn't help but giggle in response to Pit… and he was also weirdly delighted by the bodies flying across the screen.

"Dude, there is something seriously wrong with us." he commented after realizing this.

"Yeah, I accepted this a long time ago… It only comes out when I play Black and White though… You know what's hysterical? That doesn't involve being cruel to the villagers?"

Pit loaded another file, from the same land. But it was different. Both other gods were gone and there was a purple vortex pulling in everything nearby. Pit placed a teleport miracle next to this, then raised the pillar to call the villagers to worship at his temple. They headed to the teleport, since it would be used to shorten their walk to the temple. But when they got close to it, the vortex picked them up and swirled them around the air before pulling them in. They screamed and flailed in terror. Many were flailing identically in a synchronized manner. **(I have a screenshot of this, too. I had it as my background for awhile.)**

"This is your idea of not being cruel to them?" Dart asked sarcastically.

"This is a necessity. When you go to new lands, you need to have a village. You gotta bring some of your people along to build it. They don't get hurt by it, and it's funny."

Pit finished putting villagers through the vortex and clicked the scroll above it to move to the next land. After everything settled in there, Pit searched an area outside his village for something. This something turned out to be a man sitting by a fire. Pit picked up the guy, who yelled 'Please don't throw me!', and threw him. The camera zoomed in on the man and followed the guy flailing around as he flew through the air. When he hit the ground he started wailing things like 'ow my leg!' and 'oh, hell!'. When he finally came to a stop, Pit was in control of the camera again and the man he had thrown taunted him, saying 'ya didn't kill me!'

"Does he _want_ you to kill him?" Dart asked.

"I think he's a combination of comic relief and a form of help. I'm not going to explain how he helps, play the game yourself and then I'll explain."

"So he can't die?" asked Dart, noting his life percentage was still high despite his tumbling through the mountains. "What if you drown him?"

Pit grinned a little. "I've tried that…watch."

Pit dropped him in the ocean and watched. The guy wouldn't die. No matter how long he stayed in the water, he didn't drown. Then Pit made a show of panning away, then back and the guy had vanished. Pit went back to the guy's campfire, and there he was! Pit picked him up again and the guy complained about having just gotten his clothes dry.

"You can set him on fire, too. He screams 'the flames, they burn!' and stuff like that. And still refuses to die."

"It's like the developers _wanted_ to teach players to be sadistic murderers."

"It's all about choices. You can finish the game either being good or evil. And it gives you an outlet for violent impulses."

Pit loaded yet another file in a new land, with another god that Pit explained was an enemy. But in this save, the other god was down to one village, the rest belonging to Pit.

"Watch as my moral perversion reach new levels." Pit commanded.

He created a 'megablast' and approached the enemy village. He located a structure which had dozens of children running in and around it, laughing and shouting cheerfully.

"Wait. Are you planning to-" Dart was cut off as, with a gleeful yell, Pit let loose an explosion on the building with the children. High pitched shrieks filled the speakers as small figures ran around, burning and dying.

"Take that!" Pit crowed.

"I'm not sure whether to laugh or be very afraid and disturbed."

"Wait until you start playing. These people can be very frustrating. They are literally never satisfied. It won't be long until you're competing with me to see who can skip dead bodies the farthest across the ocean." Dart looked calculatingly at him.

"That just sounds so strange coming from you, Pit."

Pit smirked slightly and idly tossed an old woman into the ocean.

"I'm not sure even Viridi would condone this." Dart continued.

"It's a good thing it's virtual, isn't it then? Surely you know I'd never do something like this to a real human." Pit countered.

"I never thought you'd do it to a virtual human, either!"

"I didn't, at first. It took a lot of time before I reached a frustration level high enough to want to torture villagers. As a side note, you probably shouldn't ever watch me play Sims if this disturbed you. Same story, I'm nice most of the time but sometimes somebody pisses me off. And I don't have to restrain myself since it's a game."

-a few days later-

Dart had been playing Black and White for the past few days, and was ranting to Pit about it.

"Oh my god, Pit! These people are never satisfied! I'm really nice to them, helping them build and getting them food, then I accidentally dropped a villager on a house and they're all like, 'mercy! We need mercy!' It was an accident! And I'm somehow slightly evil despite my attention to caring for my people. Then Khazar and Lethys! They don't shut up! I float over to look at a village or something and Khazar comes to tell me something pointless, and Lethys whines about me being near his land! It's not like I don't see him _all_ the time stealing my trees. Khazar too, for that matter, but then again I steal his scaffolds all the time…"

Pit sat down, grinning knowingly.

"Doesn't it make you want to…_smite_ them?" he inquired.

Dart stopped frantically gesticulating and gazed calmly at Pit.

"Yes, Pit. I want to wring their necks sometimes. Like now. Teach me your ways!" he begged.

Pit smirked and pointed to the temple.

"You seem to have the ability to create lightning bolts…"

Dart squinted at it, then his eyes widened.

"You know, I've never actually used this…"

He created a lightning miracle, and at Pit's suggestion, headed over to his ally's village. He struck down villagers there mercilessly, yelling '_Smite! Smite!_' and cackling madly every time he killed someone. Pit was laughing hysterically at the delight his twin was taking in murdering villagers. Finally Dart used up all his mana and had to wait for the worshipers at his temple to create more.

"Aw come on! I could be killing people right now!" whined Dart.

"You could sacrifice something. You can use trees and such, but villagers give you the most power. Specifically, children. Adults give less power."

Dart nodded and picked up a random kid and dropped her on the altar, eliciting an agonized shriek. He continued the massacre, this time with a thunderstorm.

After they'd gotten it out of their system, both agreed to never reveal their psychopathic behavior to anybody, especially not Palutena. She might forbid the game, which was highly enjoyable despite some of its frustrating aspects.

* * *

**What do you know, despite Dart's qualms about Pit's behavior, it didn't take much to evoke it out of him.**

**I do not own Black and White. It is an amazing game, released about twelve years ago by Lionhead Studios. Pit's adventures playing it were inspired by my own, of course. Like Pit, I am perfectly nice to my followers 99% of the time. But sometimes… There's just something wonderfully hilarious about watching virtual people burn while screeching and running, setting fire to everything they touch. Their labels actually state that burning villagers are 'being on fire', further adding to the funny. Sometimes, it's fun to be evil for a bit. I know I'm not the only one. I've seen people's videos of tormenting toddlers in Sims because the damn things are obnoxious.**

**Yeah, with the screenshot, that was born from extreme frustration. Like I said earlier, the villagers had become lazy. They get that way basically when they have enough food in stock for them to not worry about it. There's a happy medium that keeps them happy but productive. It wouldn't be a problem, except I can't cast any miracles because they won't worship. I tried to retrain them by taking most of the food, but I discovered a problem that I'm not going to bother to explain because it's complicated. Basically, I had shot myself in the foot using a legitimate game mechanic, and I can fix it in later files but not already created ones. So after an hour of trying to retrain them, then realizing why I can't, I sent them all to the temple and set all the lazy ones (an astonishing ¾ of the population) on fire out of sheer frustration. Now you know where the sadistic behavior comes from.**

**I was originally planning for this to just be the one chapter, but an idea occurred to me. See, although I've never used it because it's been down for a long time, there's a multiplayer mode. Two or more players can compete for the land, and I think it would be amusing to pit the Pits against each other. I wouldn't write it for awhile though.**


	11. Fury

"Pit! Dart!"

The goddess of Light called out to the two angels, but only caught Pit's attention. This was technically their day off, but a situation had arisen in a human town. Pit ran over to see what his leader needed.

"Yes, Lady Palutena?" he called as he approached.

"Where's your brother? A large group of Underworld troops has attacked a human town."

"What?!" Pit exclaimed, exasperated. "Don't they ever give up? Is there someone behind it?"

Palutena smiled slightly. "No, they don't even seem to have a goal. They just like destruction. Although this is an unusually large group, but that's just because they have an instinct to band together. Makes it rather convenient for us doesn't it, since we don't have to seek out each individual. Now go get Dart and prepare. I'll have to open up a doorway, so meet me there when you're ready."

Pit nodded and dashed off. He eventually found Dart napping on the roof above their bedrooms.

"Oh look, I found a dead body on the roof." Pit said loudly. "Maybe I should poke it with a stick."

Dart mumbled an incoherent threat but drifted back to sleep quickly. Pit didn't notice, as he had gotten off the roof to find a stick. He climbed back up and began to poke the dark angel with it. After a few moments of this, Dart began to swat at the stick in an uncoordinated fashion. Pit easily evaded his attacks and kept poking his arm until he finally woke up.

"Pit! What the hell!" He pulled the stick out of Pit's hands and threw it at him. Pit ducked.

"Oh! You are alive! Good, we have an emergency mission."

Dart looked quite irritated, but sat up.

"Ugh, fine, what's going on?"

Pit slid off the roof and motioned to him to do the same. He snarled slightly, but complied. Pit went into his room to grab one of the weapons he kept there. Both twins kept at least one weapon in their rooms at all times.

"Underworld troops. Attacking a town. We gotta go take them out."

Dart grumbled some more, but followed suit and got his weapon and followed Pit. He insisted on a detour to the kitchen to get a few cookies. It didn't take much to convince Pit of the necessity of this side trip. Finally, they returned to Palutena.

"Ok, this is no ordinary mission. You see, this is one of the areas that Pit's body attacked during the time he was a ring. More specifically, this is the town that Pit managed to recover his body in."

Pit looked slightly confused. "Well, ok. But why does that make things different?" he asked.

Dart raised an eyebrow at him. "Do I really have to explain this to you?" he inquired sarcastically. "You killed a whole bunch of people there. They don't know you weren't controlling yourself. So you- and me, too- we can't just waltz in. If the townspeople see us, they'll try to kill us."

Palutena nodded. "They could have a change of heart if they see you fighting the underworld troops, but I wouldn't count on that."

"Yeah, when I was controlling Magnus' body, we noticed that the centurions were fighting Underworld troops. So it wouldn't look any different." Pit remembered.

"So, we'll have to sneak around, make sure no humans see us. Take out whatever monsters we see." Dart summed up.

Palutena nodded. "Also, don't lose each other. Under other circumstances, you could split up but even if you're careful, there's always a chance you'll get caught. I don't want to see how much damage an angry mob can do to one of you. If you're both there, you can watch each other's backs."

"Question. There's two of us. Is Viridi helping?" Pit asked.

The goddess frowned. "Yes. I talked to her while you were getting Dart. Where is she?"

"Ugh, so we have to wait for her now?" muttered Dart.

"Can't I just go ahead?" Pit wondered. "Get started on clearing things up there."

Palutena shook her head. "Pit, I just told you two to stay together. Sending you ahead would _not_ be staying together."

"Oh, yeah." Pit scratched the back of his head while his twin rolled his eyes at Pit's thoughtlessness.

Five minutes passed in irritated silence before Viridi's voice came through.

"Ok, I'm here. Are you guys ready to go?" she asked.

"It's about time." said an annoyed Dart.

"Well excuse me if I'm not too thrilled about saving humans." retorted Viridi. "I'm doing this purely as a favor. You should be thanking me."

"Well, it's not much of a favor if you show up so late that all the people are dead." Dart shot back.

"Will you both stop arguing and go?" asked Palutena. The angels both ran and jumped out the doorway.

"I thought you just wanted to see my handsome face, Viridi." commented Pit, grinning as his wings lit up.

"Pit, if I wanted to see your face, I'd take a picture. That way I wouldn't have to also listen to your voice."

"Oh, man. That's gotta burn." laughed Dart as Pit pouted. Pit shot an arrow at him.

"Shut up, or the next one won't miss." he threatened.

"Ooh, you better watch out, Dart. Pit means business." teased Viridi.

"I do mean business! Nobody messes with the strong, handsome, awesome warrior angel Pit!"

Everybody raised an eyebrow during the moment of awkward silence that followed.

"Except for everybody who messes with Pit…" Dart tacked on.

"Sorry to burst your bubble, but you do not look like a warrior. You look like a kid." informed a ruthless Viridi.

"Ouch. Can't you at least pretend to agree?" Pit winced.

"I'm not Palutena. She may feed into your little fantasies, but I won't."

"Funny though it is to hear Pit get shot down like that, we have company." announced Dart, readying his bow as several enemies made their presence known.

There weren't a large number of enemies in the air, just enough that everyone had to keep their eyes open. Finally, the goddesses let the angels down just outside the town, in a spot where no humans could see them.

"So, what's the plan?" asked Dart, taking in the scene.

"Well, I guess you should just keep to the shadows and shoot down whatever you can. You can melee if there's no humans around."

Both angels nodded. They dashed to the closest building, flattening themselves to its side. Unfortunately Pit, with his white wings and clothes, stuck out like a sore thumb, so he had to be more careful. Before moving on, they shot down the few troops that were in sight here. They got to the corner of their currently deserted street and Pit, who was closer, carefully peeked around. He found no humans there, but an assortment of monsters. They both ran out to take out the troops then quickly hid again.

Once they confirmed that all the enemies were gone in that area, they snuck to another street. This one had a few men in it, though. There were fewer troops here, presumably because of the humans' efforts. Dart was the one looking around the corner this time and cautioned Pit to stay back, but took a few inconspicuous shots to help with the monsters. Once he felt the numbers were low enough for the humans to deal with, Dart and Pit headed to another street.

They continued this for awhile, rushing out to kill Underworld troops when no humans were present and picking off enemies from the shadows when some were there. Sometimes the two had to book it as unsuspecting humans would walk down the streets and risk finding the angels. Despite this, they managed well enough, although they were both getting tired and accumulating injuries as they went along. It was too bad Palutena couldn't send the centurions in, but the humans would attack them too, and their training had never included being stealthy. Maybe it should. So the angels were on their own. They stopped to rest for a moment in an alleyway that was clear and was only accessible by a small opening that could be easily blocked. Both were pretty banged up and between the stress of both fighting and staying hidden, they couldn't keep going much longer.

"Geez. I haven't had a workout like this for awhile." panted Pit.

"Yeah. I'm starting to daydream about hot springs like you usually do." agreed Dart, tending to the worst of his injuries. Pit followed his example.

"You two are almost done." encouraged Palutena.

"Yeah, most of the Underworld troops are done for." Viridi added. "Maybe I should send my forces to help you…"

"Well, why didn't you send them before?" Dart angrily demanded to know.

"I don't want to risk my children to save the humans."

"Well, why would you send them now? The work's almost done." Pit asked.

"Because you two aren't looking so hot." she said bluntly.

"Aw, you're worried about us!" Pit beamed.

"You want me to just leave you two?" Viridi threatened.

"Pfft. You aren't going anywhere." taunted Dart.

"Watch me!" she yelled.

A moment of silence passed.

"Hey, Palutena. Did she actually leave?" asked Dart.

"Nope. She's just being quiet." Palutena confirmed his suspicions.

"You having a hard time cutting the link, or what?" Dart taunted her again.

"Oh, shut up, you moron." Viridi replied, sounding resigned. "If you two died, who would I make fun of? It benefits me to keep you alive."

Dart just smirked.

"And wipe that smirk off your face!"

Pit couldn't hold back a smirk of his own.

"Both of you! Stop it!"

A pause.

"Palutena, I'm pretty sure you're smirking too. All of you, stop it this instant!"

The twins made an effort to stop smiling. They succeeded, but it was difficult.

"That's what I thought." She sounded quite smug.

Both angels and Palutena lost their self control and started laughing. They could almost see Viridi looking huffy with her arms crossed and a pout on her face.

"You're all hopeless." the goddess of Nature proclaimed.

"Well, we should get going again. The sooner we get done, the sooner we can visit a hot spring." Pit reminded, perking up at the thought.

"And I can fix something for dinner for you." Palutena added, to help boost their morale.

"Food always sounds good." agreed Pit.

They got up and Dart went to peek around the corner. And met the angry glare of a human.

"Uh…"

"What's wrong, Dart?" Pit asked.

Dart ignored him, having noticed several more armed men behind the first. He unconsciously pushed Pit back, even though they couldn't see him yet.

"You with that angel back there?" the man asked threateningly. He obviously knew Pit was there. Pit stayed silent, realizing what the problem was.

"Yeah. What's it to you?" Dart challenged.

"As it happens, we've got a bone to pick with him." another man growled.

"As it happens- wait, it's not happening. Not until you put those down." said Dart, motioning to their weapons.

"We don't much feel like unarming ourselves around that terror." said the first man bluntly.

Yep, Dart thought, they still believed Pit was an enemy. This would be a problem. The first priority would be to keep Pit out of danger, as he was the target. But if it was possible, it would be good to clear things up here. If Dart could manage this, it would solve a lot of problems. But he'd rather get Pit out of here before trying to do that. Dart glanced at the weapons the men were holding and ruled out telling Pit to run. They had ranged weapons and could easily target him if he ran. For the moment, he'd have to just keep Pit out of sight. Palutena was also talking in his ear and seemed to be thinking the same things.

"Well, I'm not letting you near my brother with those. You might hurt him." Dart said simply, not leaving it up to discussion.

"Kid, look. I never saw you around before. You're not the one that destroyed our town, so we don't want to hurt you. That madman, on the other hand, went on a murdering spree. He's got to answer for his crimes."

"But it wasn't me!" Pit finally spoke up, sticking his head over Dart's shoulder. Dart instantly pushed him back behind the wall, muttering to him to stay back.

"Don't try to BS us, angel!" the leader roared, finally able to speak directly to his target.

"He's not." Dart replied curtly. "He wasn't in control of his body. Neither was his goddess, that's why her army also attacked you."

Most of the townspeople didn't seem to be in the mood to puzzle anything out, but some looked thoughtful. The leader of the group was in the former category.

"Well, isn't that convenient. He killed a lot of people, but it's ok because it wasn't actually him!"

"Exactly! I'm glad you get it!" said Dart sarcastically. "We're not here to hurt you. But if you attack us…"

"Dart, stop it. They have a right to be mad."

Pit stepped around Dart and dodged his attempts to grab him. The people instantly tensed up and the leader of the group pointed a crossbow at Pit. Dart knocked it away with a single motion, glaring furiously at the man. He didn't make an attempt to pick up his crossbow, but stayed tensed.

"Look, I'm sorry that-" Pit cut off, unable to keep his train of thought because Palutena and Viridi were shouting at him.

"Lady Palutena, Viridi, I can't think with you yelling in my ears." Pit said. The goddesses, terrified for his safety after that show, were yelling at him to get back where he would be protected. To be sure, Dart was in danger too, but nobody had actually threatened him yet.

"Please you two, would you stop?" Pit begged.

"I'll stop once you get your feathery butt back behind that wall!" seethed Viridi.

"She's right, Pit. You can't do anything here." Palutena tried to reason with Pit. He shook his head.

"I have to try, though."

With this statement, Viridi exploded with curses and threats. Palutena tried to talk to Pit over Viridi, making it impossible to actually understand anything either was saying. He listened for a moment, then apologized and took off his laurels with a grimace knowing Palutena wasn't going to be happy with him later. But he couldn't concentrate with them like that, so he didn't have much choice.

"Pit, put those back on and get back here. Don't be stupid." Dart commanded, trying to grab Pit's arm to pull him back. Pit dodged and sidestepped a few yards away, looking irritated.

"Why do all three of you think I should have nothing to say here?" he asked rhetorically, not giving Dart time to answer before addressing the humans again.

"Look. I'm sorry for what happened. I'm sorry I was used to cause so much suffering."

"So? Why shouldn't we just kill you where you stand?" asked the man, eyes filled with loathing. Pit flinched slightly.

"First, are there more Underworld troops?" asked Pit.

"That's none of your concern." he growled.

Pit sighed.

"We weren't lying. I had no control over my body during that time. In fact, I wasn't even in my body. I had to track it down and take it back."

"That sounds awfully convenient for you. Even if it were true, somebody has to pay." said the leader, with murmurs of agreement coming from the crowd behind him.

"Why does anybody have to pay?" Dart cut in, angry. "Killing him won't undo anything. And we've all –Pit included-paid enough."

"Countless people died because of him. He was ruthless in his attacks, and didn't discriminate. He shot down children as easily as grown men."

Dart looked down, knowing this was probably true, and that it was terrible, but also knowing Pit wasn't to blame even if he technically did it. He glanced over at Pit, but he couldn't see the angel's face because he was also looking down. Dart knew him though, and knew that Pit probably hated himself for what he did. Even if he couldn't remember any of it. Dart would have to talk to Pit later. First, to make sure there was a later, though.

"So, tell me again why you need to kill my brother? What's done is done. It wouldn't help anyone." Dart said, trying to sound reasonable.

"That one's easy. Even if it wasn't his fault, as long as he's around he's still a risk to us. We're just looking out for our own skin."

"Well, that might sound reasonable, if you'd bothered to find out exactly what happened. And if you'd bothered to ask for details, you'd know why it won't happen again. And this wouldn't be an issue."

"You may as well stop right there. I'll believe it when I see it, and the only way we can be sure is if he's dead. You should probably just leave now. We'd rather not have kill you, too."

With that he directed his attention to the light angel, who didn't notice because he was still looking down at his feet. The man picked up the crossbow that Dart had knocked out of his hands earlier and aimed at Pit.

Dart shot forward and tried to hit it away, but didn't completely succeed. Pit dropped with a cry, an arrow embedded in his leg. Although Pit was still alive thanks to Dart's intervention, it had an unfortunate consequence. The crowd was like a bomb, and the fuse had been sizzling away the whole time. With Dart's sudden movement and Pit's shout, the fuse ran out and the crowd exploded.

Dart quickly tossed out the idea of fighting, he was too tired and too outnumbered. Instead, he shrank as much as he could while still standing, made no eye contact, and let himself be moved with the crowd. Luck was on his side, and the mob quickly overlooked him, although he did get a few bruises before this happened. He inwardly sighed with relief until he realized why they were so quick to forget him.

Because they wanted Pit dead, not him.

He spun around to find Pit, listening vaguely to the goddesses yelling vainly for his twin, but there were too many people. He could hear Pit trying to get them to stop instead of actually fighting. Apparently he was naïve enough to believe that talking to them when they were like this would work.

"Pit, forget about it. You can't stop them by talking. Just fight back!" Dart commanded, trying desperately to force his way back to his twin. He was smaller than everyone here, which made forcing anyone anywhere difficult.

"But Dart! I can't hurt them, they're humans. My job is to protect them!" This was followed by a grunt of pain.

Dart froze in horror. The idiot. The damn idiot was still in 'protect humans' mode, even though an angry mob of them was trying to murder him. Pit was going to be _killed_. Dart swore at Pit's stupidity, and resumed trying to shove his way closer.

"You dumbass, listen to me!" Dart bellowed. "If you get yourself killed because you're being stupid, I'm going to-"

He paused to mime strangling someone, although Pit couldn't see. He regained his senses after a moment.

"Pit?" he called out. When he got no response, fear trickled in.

"Palutena? I think now might be the time to pull us out." Dart called out.

"I can't!" she exclaimed. "Pit took off his laurel crown! And I think he dropped it, too! You need to get to him, then I can pull you both out."

Dart heard Pit's voice again, another cry of pain. He suddenly became furious. That was it. Pit didn't want to hurt them, fine. Dart had no such qualms.

He forgot about his exhaustion and shoved his way roughly through the larger bodies towards the angel's voice, which occasionally cried out and spurred him on. By sheer luck, he also found Pit's laurel crown being trampled. He managed to get it (he tripped a few people to do this), then hit someone to get them to move.

It took him longer than he expected to get through, because although I dramatically typed in earlier that he had no qualms about hurting townspeople, he was able to reason somewhat through his anger. He realized that killing them wouldn't help their cause, and might just get Pit killed more quickly. Dart limited himself to bruising the humans, although he was free with this, figuring they deserved it. He got worse as time passed though, actually breaking a few limbs in his struggle to rescue his moronic brother. He was going to kill Pit himself when they got back. He suspected both goddesses would, too.

Finally, Dart caught sight of Pit, curled on the ground in a small clear spot. He was unsurprised, but greatly angered, to find Pit badly beaten. Pit was gasping with his eyes half closed and as Dart watched, a person from the mob viciously kicked him in the chest. Pit cried out again. Dart furiously shoved through the last few people (making sure to land a signature face kick on Pit's attacker) and reached for the lighter angel. He knelt and grabbed him, making him gasp in pain, and held on to him tightly while trying to shield him from getting beaten further.

"I've got him. Get us out of here!" Dart exclaimed, fighting against the mob that was trying to pull Pit away from him again. Light shown around him, and they found themselves in Skyworld, his panting and Pit's pained moans the only sound for a few seconds. He collapsed into a sitting position with Pit still limp in his arms.

"Pit!"

Palutena was running towards them. Dart only glanced at her, then examined Pit.

Bruises were developing, and he'd definitely look worse later. There was no way a hot spring would fix all this in one go. Worse than that, he had several deep gashes and the arrow in his leg had been jerked around. Dart was fairly certain that his arm was broken and probably some ribs, from the way he was breathing. Never underestimate the ability of a crowd to beat the crap out of someone, even if that someone is an angel.

Palutena had called a strongarm to carry Pit inside and now she knelt by the twins and tried to talk to Pit until the strongarm arrived. Pit was conscious, and could hear her. He opened his eyes and responded shakily to her, which relieved both the goddess and the dark angel. The strongarm came and took Pit from Dart, and as the first portion of treating both twins they went to the nearest hot spring. To their surprise, Viridi was waiting for them, alternately glaring and looking worriedly at Pit.

Dart didn't try to help with Pit, instead calming his nerves by taking stock of his own injuries. He'd need more than one soak to heal too, but he would only need to wrap up a couple larger wounds when he was done. Palutena and Viridi each came to fuss over him at separate times, but it was clear that he didn't need help and he insisted that Pit needed them much more. They agreed, but when he got out of the spring they came over and helped bandage his injuries anyway. He rolled his eyes and let them, then went straight to bed and fell asleep instantly.

Despite his early bedtime, Dart woke up quite late in the morning, feeling sore and still tired. He was starving, but had to glance in at Pit before doing anything about that. He hadn't seen Pit with all the bandaging on him, and was impressed with the amount. Pit was still asleep, so Dart just went ahead and headed off to get some food. Palutena was there, clearly waiting for him.

"Dart! How are you feeling? I'm afraid that with Pit's condition, I didn't really check on you like I should have."

Dart waved his hand dismissively. "That's because I didn't really get hurt. The hot spring healed most of it, and another soak should fix the rest. I'm just kind of tired still. So what's the deal with Pit?"

"Oh, he wasn't awake yet? He'll heal, but it'll take awhile."

"I wonder if he'll heal once I kill him." mused Dart, calmly sipping hot chocolate from a cup the goddess had handed him.

"He might after you kill him, but when I'm done with him he hasn't got a chance." Palutena responded serenely.

"I'm pretty sure there won't be a piece of him bigger than a toenail once Viridi's had her say." added Dart.

"I raised an idiot. I'm so sorry that you're the twin of an idiot, Dart." Palutena fumed.

"He can be so naïve. 'Why don't I take off my really important laurel crown so I can't hear the advice given to keep me alive?'" he mimicked. "And while I'm at it, I should let a bunch of humans beat me to death!" He punched the table in frustration.

"Seriously, does that kid think?!" he yelled.

"Pit's far too nice for his own good. That isn't necessarily bad, but I'm supergluing his laurels to his head so I can rescue him when he turns stupid." declared Palutena.

"Are we talking about Pit? I can tell, because I hear the word 'stupid'. I have some choice words to say to him, too."

Viridi entered the kitchen and sat down, and the other two didn't question her appearance at all. They all looked conspiratorially at each other.

"He almost got himself killed for a bunch of _humans_. I told you guys they weren't worth it." Viridi said with disgust.

"Why wouldn't they listen though? It sounded like they might." Palutena wondered.

"It's because they were in a crowd. They're easily suggestible and feed off one another." explained Viridi. "When that one guy suggested that Pit might still be a threat, the rest responded to it and became very dangerous. They just needed a spark to set them off."

"I guess that I was the spark, with my trying to disarm that man. How did the crowd get so big, anyway? It was just a few people at first, then I swear every freakin person in town was between me and Pit." fumed Dart.

"Oh, I saw them gathering. The rest zeroed in on the scene, is what happened. You just didn't notice until they all pressed in." Viridi said darkly.

"And now we have a compounded problem. Pit is hurt, and who knows what opinion he's lodged in his brain about all this. The town is probably convinced by now that you both came to try to kill off anyone Pit missed the first time around, and they may spread the word. The worst part is, although Pit was stupid, nobody really is to blame here, not even the people. Pit was right about them having every right to be mad at him."

She sighed. "And me. How are they supposed to react to the person who caused so much damage?"

"Well, I don't give a crap. If it's between Pit and every last human on the planet, you know who I'm saving." Dart announced coldly.

"Well, I second that." agreed Viridi. "Mostly because I despise humans in the first place. Pit, at least, is amusing."

Palutena didn't comment. They all knew she shouldn't. She loved Pit, but was charged with protecting humanity, and as her servant, so was Pit. If she said anything, it would turn into a pointless fight that nobody wanted to have. It broke her heart to not be able to tell him that she valued him above the world. Palutena was grateful that Pit had a brother who was free to do what she could not. Responsibility can be a terrible thing.

"Well, it's nice to hear I amuse you, Viridi."

All three turned in shock to see the heavily bandaged and exhausted Pit leaning against the doorway. Blood had soaked through some of the bandages. He was grinning, but it was forced and he quickly dropped it. He slid down to the floor pathetically, as he had unwisely used up all his energy making it here.

"You idiot, what are you doing out of bed?" Viridi demanded to know as Dart and Palutena hurried to lift him onto a chair. Pit took a minute to answer, he was looking miserable.

"I woke up and I was hungry. Nobody was around, so I came here."

"I really want to kill you, Pit. I think you're looking pathetic just to stave off the inevitable beating." Dart tried to make Pit smile. Pit recognized his intent and obliged, grinning a little. It didn't last long though. He was in considerable pain still.

"Well, I can make something for the two of you. You still haven't really eaten anything, have you Dart?"

He shook his head and she went about, making eggs and such. I don't know, do I need to go into detail?

Anyway, Dart sat next to Pit and studied him carefully. Pit did not seem inclined to talk, which in and of itself showed just how unwell he was feeling. Dart felt none of the anger and frustration towards Pit that he had earlier, but he knew it would return as soon as Pit was stronger. Viridi seemed to be of the same mind, and was gentle as she unwrapped some of the bloody bandages and examined the wounds. Dart helped her to apply an ointment to the cuts and wrap them up again with clean bandages. Pit didn't react to this except to flinch or hiss in pain from time to time.

When Palutena set a plate in front of Pit, he smiled at her in thanks and slowly began to eat. Dart wolfed down his food, since he'd essentially missed dinner the day before and breakfast that morning. It was nearing noon now. He was still hungry when he finished, and eyed the leftovers. Any other day, he'd just swipe something off of Pit's plate, but not today. He'd make sure Pit ate everything if he had to shove it down his throat.

Palutena grinned a little, seeing his look, and gave him more food.

"Wow. I'm kind of surprised there's any food left in Skyworld at the rate you're going." commented Viridi.

Pit glanced over at Dart, having only eaten half of his.

"You can have the rest of mine, if you like. I think I'm finished." he offered. Dart shook his head.

"Eat it." he commanded. Pit grimaced at his plate, then looked at each goddess in turn, hoping for someone to tell him he didn't need to finish. Finding no such permission, he made an effort to eat more.

It took awhile and some encouragement, but he managed it. His three companions spent this time glancing worriedly at each other when he wasn't looking. Pit not wanting to eat was highly unusual, but Dart figured he wouldn't take it seriously unless Pit kept it up.

When Pit finished, the two left the goddesses and went back to bed. Dart almost had to carry Pit most of the way partly because he was worn out and partly because of the injury to his leg. Pit fell asleep almost before he was in bed, certainly before Dart could say anything. He supposed that was just as well. He went back to sleep quickly as well, and woke late in the afternoon. He was less sore, but hungry again. Before heading off again, he glanced in at Pit. This time, Pit was awake and looking somewhat better then that morning. All his bandaging looked fresh, indicating that Pit had been taken to the hot spring again.

"Hey, Pit. You feeling better?" Dart asked, stepping fully in and closing the door.

Pit sat up slowly, smiling at him. It still looked forced, but less so.

"A little. Everything still hurts though."

That was good enough for the lecture that Dart had in mind.

"Well, when you let an angry mob try to kill you, that'll happen." Dart replied sarcastically. "Seriously, Pit. What were you thinking?"

Pit looked confused. "What was I supposed to do?"

"Fight back, you dolt! You took protecting them as far as it could go. You didn't have to kill anyone, they can stand a few bruises if it means you live to see another day!"

"But I don't want to hurt anyone at all!" Pit protested.

"Well, then keep your stupid laurels on." said Dart, pointing to the crushed golden leaves next to Pit's bed. Pit's mouth opened slightly in surprise at their condition. "You knew they held your connection to Palutena. Even if you didn't want to fight, she could have pulled you out. Instead, I had to shove through an angry mob and save your bacon."

Pit looked back at his irate twin. "I took them off because Lady Palutena and Viridi wouldn't stop talking at me. I couldn't concentrate." he explained.

"Pray tell, what did you need to concentrate on?!" Dart yelled.

"I needed to try to make amends for what I did to those people!"

"Pit, did you hear anything I said to them? You don't need to do anything. You've done more for them than they know, and you've suffered too. What the Chaos Kin did wasn't your fault."

"They don't know that, though. I needed to say something." insisted Pit. Dart threw his hands in the air.

"Pit, their target was you. That's why I was talking, and you were staying back! You heard that guy, they didn't want to hurt me. They did want to hurt you! You could have stayed back, or I could have passed on anything you wanted to say."

"You're not my lawyer! I can speak for myself!" Pit yelled furiously.

"You weren't doing a very good job of it. Besides, I know you. And you've already demonstrated your belief that your life is worth less than their petty revenge. Well guess what? You're the only one who thinks that. Besides the humans, of course." Dart said bitterly.

"How do you know I wasn't doing a good job of it?! You wouldn't let me get a word in for myself!" Pit shouted.

"You spent most of the time wallowing in self loathing, staring at your feet. If I hadn't been there, they probably would have burned you at the stake or something, and you'd have let them because you think you deserve it." Dart spat back.

Pit opened his mouth and tried to retort a few times, then gave up. He slowly put his head in his hands and pulled his knees up to his head, wrapping his wings around himself. He suddenly felt very tired. Dart was right, and he knew it. He didn't want to die, but hearing what he'd done from the victims had made him feel like the lowest life form in existence, undeserving of anything good.

And of course, there was his brother to consider. Pit looked up at him, and saw that the fury had gone from Dart's face. Now he was watching concernedly, allowing Pit time to think.

Pit had forgotten that his own death would mean his twin's death, as well. He couldn't do that to Dart.

Pit looked down again, his eyes watering. "I'm sorry. I still don't want to hurt humans, but I don't want to hurt you, or anyone else, either. I'm sorry." A tear ran down his cheek and he shook slightly with quiet sobs.

His twin sighed, and sat next to Pit.

"You've got to start thinking more, Pit." he said gently. "Nobody would be better off if you were killed. Not even the humans. And none of us wants to see you die."

Pit sniffed and leaned against Dart. The dark angel rolled his eyes and cringingly put his arm around Pit's shoulders, shelving his own awkwardness at offering comfort to make Pit feel better. Pit quietly cried until he was too tired to continue.

"You ok now?" Dart asked him when he'd been silent for awhile. Pit sat up and nodded, wiping his damp red eyes and giving Dart a little smile.

"I'm going to get something to eat. Walking didn't turn out so well for you last time, so I'll bring something back, ok?"

"Ok. Thank you."

"Eh, no problem. Just a warning though, I've gotten it out of my system. I won't yell at you anymore, although I'll probably give you dirty looks whenever this comes up for awhile yet. Palutena and Viridi both want to yell at you, though. Viridi will probably just straight up scream at you. I don't know about Palutena. You probably know better than I do how she'll act."

Pit looked crestfallen, realizing that this was true. Dart considered.

"I'll tell them to hold off, ok? You've had enough for now."

Pit smiled gratefully at him, then leaned back onto his bed. All the yelling and crying had left him drained. There was a good chance he'd be asleep before Dart returned.

* * *

**Will Viridi ever be convinced that humans shouldn't just be wiped out before they spread more? I've been considering this for awhile, but after the events here I'm going to say it's a resounding 'no'. She's royally pissed off at them. She won't do anything now, but she's not happy.**

**I just could not get this episode right. I had to put it down and leave it for several days. I've no idea just how realistic any of this is, but I think it came out reasonably well. Hopefully you enjoyed - er, well, not enjoyed Pit getting beaten bloody.**

**And so you all randomly know, according to urbandictionary, anatidaephobia is the fear that somehow, somewhere, a duck is watching you. Right now, as you're reading this fic. A duck is watching you read. Is it plotting something? Who knows? It simply _watches_. I'll leave you all with that not at all strange thought.**


	12. Why Ask Why?

**This is entirely a talking chapter. As such, it does some delving into the minds of the characters. Before you read this and get offended that you think I've completely misrepresented them, remember that I'm simply inserting thought and intent into game events that could have fueled what happened. We know the characters behaved a certain way, but we don't entirely know what was going on in their heads that made them do so. I'm exploring possibilities, and also laying more groundwork for the two in this particular fic. There are many possibilities for how these people think and work, but I can only work with one set here.**

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"So why did you try to kill me before?" Pit asked one day, out of the blue.

The twins were in Dart's room, Pit lounging on the bed and Dart idling on a computer. Just a few days had passed since Pit had been injured, and the worst injuries were still hanging around despite repeated soakings in the hot springs. Although nobody really expected his broken bones to heal right away, but his leg was still bothering him.

When Pit asked this question, which clearly held some thought behind it, Dart stopped what he was doing and turned to face the lighter angel. Pit was staring up at the ceiling.

"Why do you wanna know now?" Dart asked him, somewhat uncomfortable with the subject.

"Curious, I suppose. It just doesn't fit with how you are now." Pit replied.

Dart took a minute to think about it. He'd never come up with a reason for it, truthfully. That wasn't to say he'd never thought about it, but it confused him.

"I don't really know why I did." he answered simply. Pit gave him an irritated glance.

"Oh, c'mon. Do you really have to be so closed off with everyone?" he demanded, believing that Dart was simply being evasive.

"I'm not! I really don't know why I did, ok?!" Dart exclaimed, suddenly angry. Pit's expression softened.

"Calm down, bro. I'm not interrogating you, I just want to know you better. Anyway, there's got to be a reason."

"I don't know. Maybe I'm just evil. I don't know." Dart said, helplessly.

"Well, this is certainly touching a nerve." Pit commented, thoughtfully. "But why would you think you're evil?"

"Because I tried to kill you several times without provocation. Because I was created to be evil. Because I'm a dark angel. Because compared to you, I am."

Pit's eyebrows went higher with each statement, but chuckled softly at the last one.

"Dart, last night I was playing Black and White again and when I needed more mana, I'd go to an enemy village and find the youngest kid I could to sacrifice."

Dart grinned momentarily at this, but went back to his previous brooding expression.

"That may be, but you still care about humans to a fault. You're a good person, and their defender. At the end of the day, I care about me. I don't even know if I care about you for your own merits or because I have to."

Pit shrugged, less devastated about the last comment than Dart expected.

"It's not like I have a choice, you know. I didn't really choose to like you. Neither did Lady Palutena, but she likes you well enough now, too." Dart blinked at Pit.

"Of course you had a choice. Your life isn't tied to mine like mine is to yours. You could have killed me any time you wanted without hurting yourself."

Pit shook his head. "You don't get what I'm saying. I know we never said anything about even being friends, let alone family, before I dragged you back here. But that didn't actually come out of the blue. I spent so much time being concerned about you because I thought if nothing else, you're related to me. You are here directly because of me. Even though I didn't intend for your creation, I still felt that I was responsible for you, to some degree. That's part of why I tried to kill you."

"Yeah, that and I did my best to kill you first."

"I won't deny, right then I didn't think you were any more than someone shaped like me who had no other goal in life than to see me dead. I didn't think that for long, though."

Dart looked questioningly at Pit.

"You seemed… directionless. You wanted to kill me, but you couldn't keep the focus on me. You also helped defeat Pandora, and went after Medusa. You helped me in the Underworld without any attempts on my life. There was more to you than there seemed at first."

Dart mulled this over while getting up and sitting cross legged on his bed in front of Pit, having given up on computer related activities. It had never occurred to him to wonder why he didn't attack Pit in the Underworld. Now that Pit had brought it up, it was kind of strange.

"Huh. I guess I wasn't completely certain about it. I don't really remember what I was thinking, though."

"I don't think you were thinking, bro." Dart would have been mildly offended in any other context, but this kind of made sense.

"Maybe I wasn't. Maybe that's why I can't figure out why I wanted you dead. Because I had no real reason. But that means… I am evil." He kept a carefully neutral face at this pronouncement.

Pit smiled slightly. "Dude, you're thinking about this the wrong way. Why are you so obsessed with whether or not you're evil, anyway?"

Dart shrugged.

"Oh, I'll kill those centurions myself." Pit muttered, wincing. He'd noticed the few who hated his twin, but never dreamed that Dart was taking them seriously. "Dart, they're wrong. Why do you even listen to them?"

"I thought changing my name would help me, but nothing has gotten better. I guess I'll always just be a dark angel." Dart muttered.

"You're being incredibly shallow." Pit chided. Dart was surprised out of his melancholy for a moment.

"What?! How am I shallow?!"

"Going on about your appearance again."

Dart gesticulated to their wings wildly.

"Do you really not like your wings?" Pit asked, uncertainly. Dart paused, considering.

"It's not that, exactly." he finally said. "But _they_ don't like them."

"Why are you still going on about them?" Pit asked impatiently. Dart paused again, wondering now himself.

"I…actually, I… have no idea." he said confusingly. "It bothers me, but I don't know why." Pit set his chin in his hand and studied his twin for a minute. Dart was uncomfortable under Pit's stare, but didn't know what to say.

"Maybe it bothers you because you think that yourself, and they're just confirming it to you." the light angel said finally. Dart mulled this over.

"Maybe." he decided. "I guess I worry about what I really am. I'm afraid I might be inherently evil, no matter what I want to be."

"Then I guess we've found our problem here. Let's rewind a bit. Why did you want to kill me?" Pit asked. This time Dart didn't think about it, but repeated the answer he gave before.

"I had no reason. Doesn't wanting to kill without reason make me evil?" he asked, putting up a good nonchalant front.

"Not necessarily." Pit said. Dart raised an eyebrow, but said nothing as Pit clearly had a point to make. "You're very young, you know… you weren't experienced. You were confused and angry because you were born being told that you weren't your own person, on two counts. One," Pit said, counting off on his fingers.

"Pandora claimed you as her pawn. She cared nothing for you, just wanted a blindly devoted fighter. I guess she figured it was the same as my fighting for Lady Palutena, so you'd do it." Pit added in thoughtfully. Dart considered this too.

"I thought so, too. I thought you were being stupid, just playing follow the leader for no reason. But I think it's different. Palutena cares personally for you. She gives you reason to care back. You work for her, but you get plenty in return for it. Obviously, Pandora would do nothing of the sort. Or Medusa. I suppose if they'd offered me something right away instead of just giving me orders, I may have sided with them, at least initially."

"Medusa did offer you something though, the next day." Pit pointed out. Dart grinned.

"I had everything I wanted by then. I could fly, and I could take care of myself. I needed nothing that Medusa had to offer." Pit nodded, then prepared to make his next point.

"Pandora aside, I was also claiming you, in a sense. You were my clone. My initial impression of you was of nothing more than an extension of me. I was also telling you that you weren't an individual. Because of that, you had every right to be mad at me."

Dart shook his head, but Pit cut in before he could say anything.

"Dart, the fact is you were placed in a very unfair situation. I realize now that you were only responding to me. Hm." Pit looked down, smiling ruefully. "Here I am, demanding answers from you when I should be apologizing for treating you like an object. I'd be mad, too if I were plunked with no frame of reference into the world and everyone around me treating me like I have less worth than they do."

Pit looked up. "I'm really sorry about that, Dart."

"But I still shouldn't have attacked you!" Dart exclaimed, flustered as he tried to process this new viewpoint.

"For god's sake, Dart! We were talking about you while you were right there! I was practically begging for it!" Pit insisted.

"Well, you didn't intend it. From here, that's pretty obvious. And in any case, you're not very old yourself." added Dart.

"Well, we're both kids and we both did stupid things that we later realized were wrong. I'm as much to blame for you trying to kill me as you are. Let's call it even, ok?" Pit stuck out his hand.

Dart stared at it. Pit had just made a remarkable amount of sense, and he was finding himself slightly annoyed at Pit now because he realized how true it was. Pit had been quite rude to him.

After accepting this conclusion, he felt a wave of relief. He wasn't some monster that would kill without provocation. Pit had unintentionally goaded him. He had had a reason to be mad at Pit. Killing him was overboard, but… what they had both said about age was true. Dart would never consider killing someone over a mere insult now. Dart hadn't had the luxury of learning control or morals before that confrontation, but now that he was a little older he had learned better how to handle anger. Hell, he hadn't even realized that Pit had done anything to him, let alone that Pit hadn't meant it and that Dart should be more understanding. He wasn't completely to blame for his initial outburst. Dart still felt guilty, but suddenly he realized that he felt more on the same plane as Pit. He'd been harboring feelings of inferiority to Pit, but had shoved them under the rug until Pit had stirred it up.

Dart suddenly grinned at Pit and grabbed his hand. Pit returned the grin and they shook on it.

"So we can agree that you weren't being evil in the beginning, just angry." Pit summed up. Dart frowned, one of his other points coming back to mind.

"I was created to be evil, though. I was created to be the opposite of you. I think we can safely say you're not evil, Pit. I'm even the opposite of you in color. What does that say about the rest of me?" Dart asked, unconsciously hoping Pit would have something comforting to say. He was not disappointed.

"It's the mirror of Truth, dolt. If you think I'm not evil, then how could it make a truthfully evil clone of me? And in any case, if it worked to create the opposite, how were they making copies of Underworld troops with it? If they used a normal Underworld monster to create copies, wouldn't they have allied themselves with us, strange as that sounds? They obviously didn't. The copies were the same as the originals."

Dart blinked. "I guess that's a fair point. But why do I look different?"

Pit waved his hand dismissively.

"Coloring aside, we're identical. Pandora could probably have messed with your coloring if she wanted. Although you've never sided with Medusa, you look far more like you would than I do. She may have done that herself, making something that fights like me but looks more sinister. The other option is that the cracked mirror caused it, but I don't think that did it."

"So my 'dark angel' look could just have been Pandora's preference." Dart stated, looking somewhat angry. Pit smiled at him.

"For what it's worth, I think you look cool. I wouldn't want black wings myself, but that's because they're mine as they are. I can't imagine you any different than you are now, and I wouldn't change anything if I could."

Dart squinted at him. Although Pit had essentially complimented his looks, it felt more like he was telling Dart it was okay for him to look the way he did than flattery. There had recently been a part of him that wondered if his 'wrong' coloring signaled that there was something else wrong with him that he'd have to fight if he wanted to keep everything he cared about. He was startled to realize that he'd only begun to think that once he heard the centurions associating his black wings and red eyes with being evil. With the recent conversation still fresh in his mind, Dart realized that this was probably also just a symptom of his guilt at his attempts on Pit's life. If he wasn't acting because of an inherently evil nature then, and he hadn't done anything bad since then… then Dart could conclude that he probably wasn't evil now. That maybe, Pit was right.

It wasn't, he reflected, like he had to resist impulses to drown puppies or kick babies or anything. He sincerely doubted Pit harbored such desires, either. He snorted a little as he realized that a truly terrible person probably wouldn't be worried about whether or not he was a bad guy.

"You sound like you've given all this a lot of thought." he observed. Pit rolled his eyes.

"Of course I have. Who do you think I am!? If the point you're making is I sound smarter than usual, then yes. I didn't come up with all this just now."

"It's kind of weird, knowing that." Dart commented.

"I could just be self centered, but I think you spend time contemplating me. The other day you certainly sounded like you've contemplated me and my behavior." Pit pointed out, referring to Dart's speech after Pit nearly got killed a few days before.

"You've got a point there." Dart admitted.

"So I guess I'm allowed to try to figure out what's going on in your head, eh? We're each other's only blood relative. It does mean something to me, you know." Dart looked at him.

"I guess if anyone has a right to know what makes me tick, it's you." he decided.

"I'm taking you up on your unspoken offer to ask you more questions!" Pit announced happily. Before Dart could protest, Pit tossed another question at his twin that surprised him.

"So why'd you help me with the Chaos Kin, anyway?"

"Because I found out I am affected by you." was the instant answer.

"There's gotta be more than that. You could have let me be, but you chose not to."

"You're probably right about that. You'll have to give me a few me a few minutes here." Pit obliged and they sat in silence. Eventually, Dart broke the silence.

"I think I was coming to my senses, more than anything. I kind of stopped wanting to kill you even before that."

Pit grinned. "I thought that fight at the Lunar Sanctum seemed more like rivalry than anything else."

"Yeah. I guess it started when we unintentionally teamed up against Medusa and her army. You didn't attack me, it kind of suggested that we could coexist peacefully."

"But why'd you keep fighting after that, even just for rivalry? Then you showed up to help me later." Pit asked. Dart tried to explain.

"You were the one person in my existence that I knew for a fact was important to me in some way. The rest could shift, I could choose how important others were to me. But you, you're my original. Then when I found our connection, it took on a whole new meaning. Before, I tried to deal with our relationship by getting rid of you. After that, I couldn't do that, I didn't _want_ to do that anymore, so I needed to find another place for you in my life. Being your friend sounded like the best solution, that way I could help keep you alive."

"If you wanted to be my friend, why'd you leave after the war?" Pit questioned.

"Because you complicated things. You nearly got killed because of me. I could have handled the guilt I felt at how I acted before, but then even without my apologizing for trying to kill you, you gave everything to save me. It kind of compounded my guilt, that I had been so selfish when you're so generous. I felt like I wasn't worth it."

"I hope you don't feel like that anymore." Pit said. Dart smiled at him.

"Don't worry. Knowing you has revealed that you're as bad as me." Pit shoved him in response. Dart continued "Out of curiosity, why exactly did you save me? I decided to try to become your friend because I had to, but you aren't dependant on me. So why did you do that?"

It was Pit's turn to think now.

"Well, like I mentioned earlier, and when you first came here, I can't help but care about you, no matter what you do." Pit explained.

"But why?" Dart persisted.

"I didn't come up with the idea that you are my brother out of the blue. You see, from the very beginning, I felt somewhat responsible for you. When I thought you were destructive and nothing else, I thought I had to kill you. But as I saw more of you, I realized there was more to you. You were lost, and needed help. You look like me, it wasn't lost on me that you are legitimately related to me. Who else did you have to help you, to give you the chance to be something else?"

Pit gave Dart a moment to process this before going on.

"That's the thing about family. You can't really expect anyone else to give you a chance, to forgive you when you mess up. To make sacrifices for you. In the end, we're each other's only family, and we have only each other to rely on. It was only natural to risk myself to save my only brother."

Pit sighed. "That's the other thing. I wanted a brother. I have Lady Palutena, who's like my mom. But she's also my boss. I wanted someone who didn't have the dual role like that. I was given the unexpected chance to have one, and I was willing to work to get it. And you know what? You're totally worth it."

"Well. When you put it that way, it sounds like family of any sort is a lot of commitment and work." Dart mused.

"Now that you know what I expect, here's your chance to back out." teased Pit.

"You're not getting rid of me that easily." Dart shot back, smirking. After a moment, the smirk softened.

"I guess when it comes down to it, I got pretty lucky." he commented. Pit tilted his head, waiting for an elaboration.

"In theory, my nature gives me no right to expect anything from anyone. If I had been the clone of someone else, who cared less than you do, I doubt I'd be in as good a shape as I am now." Pit nodded slowly.

"Sappy though this sounds, I'm glad we talked." he said, satisfied with their discussion and ready to end it.

"Oh god. Did we seriously just have what some might refer to as a 'heart to heart'?" Dart asked, wincing slightly.

"Yep." Pit confirmed.

"Well, I'm going to have to offset the sappiness." announced the dark angel in response.

Pit gave him a confused look as he stood up and stretched. Dart strode over to his confused twin and threw him over his shoulder, strode to the window while ignoring Pit's yells of protestation, and dropped the light angel out (carefully, to avoid aggravating any of his healing injuries). He closed and bolted the windows for good measure, giggling immaturely the whole time. Pit would have to go the long way around to get back in, and to make things funnier, Dart heard Palutena asked Pit what was going on, as she witnessed the whole thing. He laughed hysterically when he heard a bewildered Pit tell her he had no idea what just happened. Dart fell to the floor and laughed even harder when Pit and Palutena both looked questioningly at him through the window.

By the time Pit returned, Dart had gotten himself under control and soberly offered him a piece of cake. Pit looked suspiciously at it, then at him, then cautiously took it.

"Dude… where'd you get cake?"

"From my junk food stash." Dart answered.

"A 'stache, eh?" Pit asked, grinning, then got some icing on his finger and quickly swiped it across Dart's upper lip.

"You need a beard to go with that mustache…" Pit dapped some more icing on the other angel's chin. Dart kept an eyebrow raised the whole time, but was taken by surprise when Pit, after several moments of examining his twin's face and 'hm' ing, suddenly smashed the plate of cake onto Dart's chin.

"A work of art!" Pit pronounced dramatically as Dart tried to process what just happened.

"I give you a gift from my junk food stash, and this is how you repay me?!" he cried out. Instead of responding, Pit began to laugh hysterically at Dart.

"Pit, I forgot to ask-"

Palutena had appeared in the open doorway and was trying to make sense of the scene before her. After several moments, during which Pit got his laughter under control, she resumed speaking, deciding that sometimes, it's better not to know.

"Have you gone to the hot spring yet today? When I saw you a minute ago, you were still limping." she observed. Dart squinted at Pit's leg, but the bandaging prevented him from seeing the arrow wound.

"Not yet, Lady Palutena. I guess it's about time to go there." He turned to his twin.

"Since you made me walk all the way around here and got my leg hurting again, you owe me transportation to the hot spring." Pit demanded. Dart grinned slightly and picked himself up.

"Alright, alright. Hop on."

Pit wrapped his good arm around Dart's neck and held onto his shoulder with the healing arm and Dart gave him a piggyback ride to the hot spring. Palutena smiled and shook her head at their retreating forms before heading in the opposite direction.

* * *

**Well. I can only hope I made some sense.**


	13. Crushed Leaves

**Well, I'm back with the beginning of a small arc. I wanted to have it all written out before posting the first part, but I've passed the two week mark. Although I did upload that other little piece for your perusal. Whatever. I've drawn on some Greek mythology for this, the story of Daphne to be specific. Except I replaced Apollo with Pyrrhon, since I decided I don't want to actually create Apollo. Anyway. Enjoy.**

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Two weeks had passed since Pit's run in with the angry mob in town. Viridi had screamed at him (he hid behind Dart for most of this) then Palutena had another Talk (capitalization intended) with him that involved no shouting like the first two, but he cried again (aw). He had fully healed since, but Palutena hadn't even suggested sending him out and he was getting restless. Here we find Pit begging his goddess to let him fly on a patrol mission to wipe out stray monsters.

"Laby Palutena, c'mon! I've done nothing in forever! Even when I got out of bed, I've had nothing to do but spar with Dart, and even then it's been under orders to be very careful. I'm better now! I want to fly!"

Palutena took in Pit's hyperactive form, squirming slightly with impatience. She sighed, knowing he was right. She was reluctant to let him out of her sight since the last time he'd come back badly injured. But of course, Pit had bounced back from that. And he wouldn't be tied down for long.

"Alright, Pit. Go tell Dart and get yourself rea-" she broke off because as soon as the first word was out of her mouth, Pit had cheered and dashed out of the room excitedly, calling his brother's name. She shook her head, smiling at his exuberance.

Pit ran into Dart very quickly, holding a bow and making his way to Palutena for the mission.

"Hey! Hey bro! Guess what?!" Pit shouted, jumping up and down and fluttering his white wings.

"Palutena has finally gotten you a working brain? How come you aren't using it yet?" Dart asked very seriously.

"Well, as you know I don't have one to begin with. I can't figure out how to use the new one." Pit said, going along with it.

"Well, maybe you just need to smack the side of it. That always helps. Allow me." Dart smacked the side of Pit's head before he could jump away.

"Ow, dude! I think you broke it!" Pit exclaimed, rubbing his head.

"Aw, so you got a brain for nothing! That sucks, Pit!"

"Ha, but seriously, guess what?"

Dart sighed and crossed his arms. "Ok, I'll bite. What?"

"Lady Palutena is letting me go on the next mission! I finally get to do something besides sit around!"

Dart uncrossed his arms. "So I don't need to go on this one? Great, you can start pulling your weight again. Slacker."

"Whiner." Pit shot back.

"Lazy."

"Sissy."

"Sloth."

"Clumsy." With that, Pit tripped his twin and ran, getting to his weapon stash and grabbing a weapon while still at top speed. He had a good enough head start that he wasn't too worried about Dart catching up before he could make it to Lady Palutena. He skidded to a halt once he reached her, looking triumphant while threats to his well-being echoed in the hallway behind.

"Ok, what'd you do to him?" asked the goddess, smiling a bit.

"Oh, he's just feeling particularly clumsy today and is taking it out on me." Pit said, eyes wide and bright with big smile plastered on his face and his hands clasped behind him as he rocked back and forth on his feet. Basically, the picture of child-like innocence. Palutena knew never to trust this look nowadays. Surprisingly, Dart had also perfected this look by mimicking Pit. Of course, it was to be trusted even less when the dark angel did it.

Speaking of the dark angel, he quickly sped into the room, but stopped himself short of tackling Pit, which was his original intention. He glared wordlessly at his still innocent looking twin. Pit's grin got wider and he showed his teeth. Dart straightened up suddenly, losing all hostility. Pit's look turned suspicious.

"I'm not going to bother doing anything now." Dart stated. "I'm going to wait. When you least suspect it, I'll be there to ambush you. I'm not going to tell you when. Have fun dealing with the suspense."

Pit tried looking distressed and pleading.

"Nope. You can look as pathetic as you want. No mercy."

Pit went back to glaring suspiciously at him. Palutena cut in at this point.

"Well, Pit. Are you ready to fly?" she asked him.

With a last narrow-eyed glance at his brother, Pit looked eagerly at his goddess.

"Yeah! Can I go now?"

Palutena waved her staff at the door as an answer and it opened. She and Dart strolled to the reflecting pool to watch as Pit ran, whooping, to jump out the door.

Pit leapt through and enjoyed the few seconds of falling that preceded the Power of Flight kicking in.

Then he enjoyed a few more seconds of free fall.

He enjoyed the next few slightly less than before.

Pit frowned.

"Lady Palutena? I think now would be a good time to activate the Power of Flight."

He received no answer. Pit frantically reached up to make sure his laurels were on his head. Palutena had carefully repaired them after Pit's ordeal and given him a huge lecture about keeping them on. He definitely had them on now.

"Lady Palutena?" he called again.

A faint voice reached his ears from above, although he couldn't make anything out. Pit looked over his shoulder and saw something far above him. He turned around and squinted at it.

"Pit!" the voice came again. This time, Pit recognized the voice and the shape as his twin's.

"Dart! Something's wrong!" he yelled at his twin.

"Don't worry, I'll catch you! Just…um… try to fall as slowly as you can!"

Pit spread his limbs to catch more wind and waited anxiously, not wanting to look down at the quickly growing landscape below him. Shortly he could see that Dart had the Power of Flight sparkling in his black wings. He caught up to Pit quickly.

"Grab my hand!" he shouted at Pit, and Pit reached. They gripped each other's arms tightly and Dart yelled to Palutena that he had Pit. A pillar of light caught them up, and the wind stopped rushing in their ears as they were teleported back to Skyworld.

Pit let go of Dart's arms and collapsed, shaking, onto the floor. Dart knelt by him.

"Pit! Are you alright?!" Palutena cried, rushing to check on her angel. Pit just nodded.

"Didn't I tell you to keep your laurels on, Pit! You would have died if Dart hadn't been here to go after you!" she exclaimed.

"But I do have my laurels on, Lady Palutena!" Pit protested. "Something else was wrong!"

"Dart, I know you like to prank Pit. Did you do anything that might have caused this?" Palutena carefully asked the dark angel. But he shook his head.

"No. I'm not _that_ stupid." Palutena nodded, satisfied.

"Pit, give me your laurels, please."

He complied, pulling the golden leaves out of his hair and handing them to her. She examined them for several minutes before sighing in frustration.

"I can't tell if anything's wrong with them" she admitted. "I really know very little about this laurel crown and how it works."

"How is that?" Dart asked her, confused. "And who would know?"

"Viridi might. That comes from a tree, right? She's the goddess of Nature." Pit pointed out.

Palutena smiled at Pit. "You're right, Pit. That's a good idea. I'll contact her right now."

Pit beamed at the praise, then exchanged confused and concerned looks with Dart while waiting for Viridi to speak with them.

"So, what happened?" Dart murmured to Pit.

"I dunno. I just kept falling, I couldn't hear you or Lady Palutena." Dart nodded slightly.

"You didn't appear in the reflecting pool right away. We both called you, but we heard nothing and Palutena was certain you didn't have the Power of Flight. She usually uses your laurels as a direct link, but she could still focus the reflection without their help because she knew where you were. When we saw you were falling, she gave me flight before I jumped out. Obviously, it worked for me."

"Pit! Dart!"

The two looked up expectantly.

"We're going to see Viridi. Since you can't fly, Pit, we'll take the Lightning Chariot."

The angels both agreed and stood.

"Right now?" Pit asked.

"Yes. Lead the way!" she said, gesturing to the door. Pit grinned and trotted out, Dart walking behind him. The boys had a routine for getting the unicorns ready and so they worked quickly and efficiently until it came time to decide who got to drive. They scuffled until Pit complained that he still hadn't gotten to do anything in weeks, then Dart relented. After all, Pit hadn't actually gotten to go on his mission.

They loaded themselves in the chariot, Pit acting somewhat nervous because he'd never driven Palutena anywhere in the Lightning Chariot and wanted her to be impressed. Dart was nonchalant about the whole situation. Pit knew the way to Viridi's sanctuary and so they arrived in good time.

Viridi took a moment to greet Phos and Lux before she showed the angels where to release them, then all four sat in a garden outside.

"So, where is this laurel crown, Pit?" she asked, hand out expectantly. Pit panicked for a moment, realizing that it wasn't on his head.

"Um, wait. I don't have it."

"You forgot it?! You're such an idiot, Pit!" Dart shot at him, rolling his eyes.

"He didn't forget it, Dart. Remember, he gave it to me." cut in Palutena, holding the golden laurels. She handed it to Viridi, who shushed them all and examined it for what seemed like forever.

Finally, she looked up thoughtfully.

"These definitely aren't going to work how they did before. You fixed them up nicely, Palutena, but that was only cosmetic. Pit will need to use something else."

"Can I use Dart's, maybe?" Pit wondered.

"I don't see why not." mused Palutena.

"Bro, can I try your laurels?" Pit asked. Dart hesitated before removing his from his hair, then hesitated again before handing it to the other angel. Pit took it carefully and set it on his head. Palutena concentrated, then smiled.

"Yes, Dart's laurels work on Pit."

"Well, that's a good thing to know." Pit removed them and quickly handed them back to his brother, who restored them to their rightful place.

"But it would be better if we didn't have to share like that, not to mention they're his." continued Pit.

"Yes, we'll have to find a way to get you a new set." agreed Palutena.

"Can't we just go find a laurel tree on the surface somewhere?" Dart asked, shrugging.

"No." answered Viridi, firmly.

"This did not come from an ordinary tree." said Palutena. "More than that, I can't say."

"Wait. How can you not know? How'd you get the first one?" questioned Dart. Palutena took the circlet back from Viridi.

"I didn't get the first one. Believe it or not… Medusa did." All of her companions were taken aback.

"Medusa?! Why would she have given those to you?" Pit asked, eyes wide.

"We used to rule over Skyworld together. I've told you this before, Pit. I'm the goddess of Light, she, the goddess of Darkness. She wasn't always my enemy."

"But she has been for Pit's whole life. She had to have given them to you before." pointed out the dark angel.

"Right. You're not my first angel, Pit. Medusa had never been interested in having an angel as her servant, but when I decided to try it out for myself, she helped me. She had the branch, and thought of using it as my connection with my angel."

The goddess sighed, touching the leaves gently.

"She even designed and shaped it for me. Never asked for anything in return, either." she mused to herself.

Pit looked confused.

"Why-"

Viridi elbowed him to shut him up, and Pit took the hint. After a minute or so, Palutena looked up.

"I never asked her where she got the branch, or how. So I don't really have any useful information here."

"And once again, I have the answer." All eyes returned to Viridi. "This branch came from Daphne." She announced.

There was a beat of silence as all three confirmed that they had no idea who she was talking about.

"Daphne?" the twins asked.

"She is the original laurel."

"Trees have genders?" asked Dart, smirking slightly.

"A lot of plants do, actually. But that's not why Daphne is female." said Viridi, glaring at Dart slightly. "She was originally a nymph."

"So, how did she become a tree?" asked Pit.

"It's a somewhat messed up story. Daphne was the daughter of a river spirit called Ladon. She was a nice girl, although rather flirtatious, and Ladon was very possessive and overprotective of her. She loved her father very much, though, and so tolerated it although it annoyed her.

Daphne was very beautiful and she attracted all sorts- including... well, Pyrrhon. She wanted nothing to do with him and rejected him because, well, you guys remember what he was like."

Dart raised his hand.

"Time out. I don't know who you're talking about."

"Context, Dart. Obviously, he's someone you wouldn't want to date." said Viridi, rolling her eyes.

"Well, I'm pretty sure I'm straight, so…"

"And now you're deliberately missing the point." she threw a rock at his smirking face, which he ducked. Viridi continued her story.

"It turns out he couldn't take no for an answer, and actually tried to run her down. Daphne was frightened, and ran to her father's river to ask for help.

He answered instantly by turning her into the first laurel tree. This happened a long time ago, and all ordinary laurel trees are descendants of that one.

What's sad, is that the transformation is irreversible. Now, I know better than anyone that trees are alive, but it's almost like she died. She's there, but not awake. It's kind of like she's in a permanent coma."

The other three thought about the story for a minute.

"I wonder how the Mirror of Truth managed to copy the laurel branch, too." Dart commented after a while.

"That is a curiosity." agreed Viridi.

"So how do you know all this?" asked Pit curiously.

"We're distant relatives. I can't say exactly how off the top of my head. But we've met, and more importantly to this discussion, I know where to find her. I'd be happy to guide you there, if you like." she offered.

"That would be great, Viridi. Will she mind us taking one of her branches, though?" Palutena questioned.

"She won't miss it." Viridi said, sadly. "It's more a matter of whether Ladon will mind or not. Although Daphne's an immovable, unaware tree, it hasn't stopped him from being overprotective of her."

"I'm going to guess that getting to her isn't going to be easy." Palutena commented.

"Probably not." Viridi agreed. "Ladon put defenses around her, although it's possible to get through."

"What defenses do you know of? It would be best not to go in blind."

"Wait, wait! Who's going, exactly?" asked Dart.

"I am, duh." answered Pit impatiently, rolling his eyes. He was done sitting around.

"I'm going with you, then." declared the dark angel.

"Um, no." said Pit, staring at him. "One, I don't need your help. Two, you've gotten to do everything else since I got hurt. It's my turn." Dart glanced at Pit.

"It's funny how you think I'm gonna listen to you."

Pit huffed in annoyance.

"Are you really planning to be difficult? Why can't you just let me be?"

"Dude, if I'm not there, who's gonna save your sorry ass when you get in trouble? I'm going with you, and this is not up for discussion."

"Sorry, Pit." Palutena cut in. "Dart wins this round. Quite frankly, none of us trusts you to not get hurt on your own right now." Dart and Viridi both nodded in agreement.

"But I've fought tons of missions without getting seriously hurt! It happens once and you're all paranoid now?!" Pit shouted, frustrated.

"…pretty much." answered Viridi.

"Why?!" he yelled

"Everyone loves you, Pit." replied Palutena, patting him on the head. Pit crossed his arms and stared straight ahead, annoyance written clearly on his face. Cooped up hyperactivity didn't do much for his temper.

"Ooh, that looks like fun." Dart stood and stepped closer to Pit, then started patting his head as well. This sent Pit past his tolerance level and he launched himself at Dart with a furious yell.

The goddesses watched the scuffle for a moment, then resumed speaking as if nothing was out of the ordinary. Which, it really wasn't.

"So, I know of a few plant based defenses Ladon has placed around Daphne. There is a fungus in one area, which if inhaled will cause the victim to fall asleep and experience a vivid nightmare. It won't kill you if you get out, and they usually wake within an hour. Got that?"

"I should probably write this down." commented Palutena. She summoned writing implements and took notes. This mission sounded more dangerous than usual, and so knowing what was in store for them would help greatly.

Just as she looked up, Pit was somehow thrown bodily past her and she blinked. Dart ran after him, only to be tossed to the side and jumped on by his white winged counterpart.

"Anyway" she said, making a point to ignore the fight.

"Yes, anyway. Pretty much don't eat anything that grows there."

"I'm not sure even they're stupid enough to try to eat stuff there." Palutena commented. She saw Dart with Pit in a headlock giving him a noogie. Pit was struggling and trying to hit him.

"… Then again…" she wrote it down.

"There are plants that are essentially booby traps strewn around the area. Look carefully for roots or vines laying across the path. Do not touch them, they are often connected to nets or snares."

"Nets or snares…" Palutena muttered as she wrote it down. Behind her, she heard a crack followed by a muffled yell of pain.

"Right before you get to the end, there is a band of poisonous fumes. It smells pleasant, so anyone who doesn't know better may just sit there and enjoy dying. I have an antidote though, I'll send it with them. They can't avoid inhaling some, so they'll both have to use the antidote right after going through, although if they go through quickly the poison shouldn't be too harmful."

The goddess of Light nodded as she wrote. She heard Pit complain about Dart getting blood all over his white tunic. Dart retorted something about it being all Pit's fault. Then she heard a thunk. She made a mental note to check and make sure both boys were still alive in a minute or two.

"And just one more danger that I know of specifically. At a bend in the river, Ladon put a spell that tries to lure anyone close enough for it to grab them and drown them. Kind of like sirens, except it's just a voice laced with compulsion. It will offer them something they want, and the magic woven into it will make them more likely to listen."

"Well, that sounds well thought out. How exactly do you know these things, though?" Palutena questioned. Viridi shrugged.

"Like I said, distant relative. Ladon asked me for my help with some of these. I didn't specifically place the booby traps, so I can't give a layout for them. They two of them have just got to be sharp."

At this point Palutena turned around to survey the damage the twins had done to each other. She was caught by surprise when she saw blood covering both of them. I mean, she'd heard them mention blood earlier but she hadn't imagined this.

"Are you two trying to kill each other?!" she exclaimed, standing up to check on them both. She scanned them but couldn't find any obvious injuries. Then she noticed Dart had his hands on his nose and fresh blood seeping out from under his fingers. They were both sitting on the floor, having finished the fight shortly before she turned around and she knelt in front of the dark angel. She tried to pry his fingers off his face but he gave a muffled protest and kept his hands where they were. Suddenly, Pit pinned him to the floor and pulled Dart's hands off his face to reveal an obviously broken and very bloody nose.

Palutena glared at Pit, who looked mulish. He was still feeling too high strung for the guilt at putting Dart in this condition to kick in.

"I didn't intend to break him, I wasn't even aiming for his face."

"And what exactly did you 'not' aim at his face?" she inquired disapprovingly.

"My foot."

She rolled her eyes and returned her attention to Dart, who was now glaring at both herself and Pit. She carefully felt the break, ignoring Dart's protests, then without warning set it back in place. At the same instant she and Pit both let him up so he instantly yelled and rolled over while covering his face again. He lay moaning on his side for another minute or so while the others waited for him to get over it.

Palutena turned to Pit.

"Ok, where are you bleeding, then?" she asked, trying to find the source of blood on his clothing.

"Oh, it's not mine. This all came from him." Pit said, pointing to Dart. Palutena's eyes widened.

"And why didn't you do something before it go to this point?!" she exclaimed. "I thought I was being rhetorical when I asked if you were trying to kill him."

Before Pit could respond, Dart sat up and glared at everyone again.

"What're you all looking at?" he demanded to know. Blood was still slowly running down his face, although it had almost stopped.

"You should probably pinch that." Viridi pointed out, somewhat concerned at the pallor that had resulted from the blood loss. He either didn't notice or didn't care about her concern, but simply gave her a murderous look at the suggestion that he should even touch his very painful nose.

"Well, since you boys apparently actually were trying to kill each other, I'll repeat what Viridi told me." began Palutena. Pit cut her off, though.

"Fungus that causes nightmares. Bad, but won't kill if you don't inhale too much. Don't eat anything. Don't trip over or step on any vines or roots, they'll trap us. There's a poison fog that we'll have to breathe some of, so we'll have to take an antidote that Viridi's giving us afterwards. Don't listen to the magical voice that says it can let me fly on my own, because it'll actually drown me. Can I go now?!" Pit finished impatiently.

Both goddesses blinked. Viridi recovered from Pit's unexpected acuity first.

"You seriously need to calm your nerves, Pit. I don't think you ought to be going anywhere today. Not to mention, your twin isn't in any shape to go on a dangerous mission either. Lastly, you'll have a hike. You'd best start earlier in the day."

"I'll say." mumbled Dart in belated response to the comment his condition. Palutena eyed him for a moment.

"Viridi's right. Why don't we go home now and patch you up. Pit, you'll need to pack for this, since you can't eat anything there. We'll make better plans when we get home."

She paused, considering her captain.

"I suppose you'd better borrow Dart's laurels and go take out your hyperactivity on a few monsters, too." she decided.

Pit brightened at this, then ran out to call Phos and Lux. Viridi left to fetch the antidote that the angels would need and some potions and salve for Dart.

Dart stayed sitting on the floor until it was time to leave. He got up, and after just a few steps nearly fell over because he was uncoordinated. When he saw this, Pit finally began to feel guilty.

"Um, hey. Let me help you." he suggested, becoming anxious. Dart surprisingly accepted Pit's offer, and they made it to the chariot without incident. All three waved to the goddess of Nature, then Pit shouted to the unicorns and they were off.

During the trip, Pit's guilt at beating up Dart so badly (or rather, allowing him to lose a disturbing amount of blood) grew. He kept glancing back at the dark angel. Dart would sometimes catch his eye, but didn't seem at all angry like Pit would expect. Finally, he had to ask.

"Aren't you mad at me, bro?"

"What, for this?" Dart asked, pointing to his face, which was now swollen. Pit nodded.

"Nah. Not really."

"But why?" Pit asked, perplexed. "That looks like it really hurts, and I did that to you. I also started the fight."

"I knew what I was getting in to when I patted you on the head like that. You needed to let off some steam, so I provoked you."

Pit stared at him.

"So… you're saying you let me hit you. To help me."

"Yep." Dart confirmed.

Pit blinked at this news.

"Um…well… thank you. And, sorry about your nose."

"You also get an ego boost, since most of the time I'm better looking than you."

Pit grinned in amusement. Dart returned the grin. Palutena had been listening to them with great interest, and also smiled at the gibe.

The three continued to Skyworld, Dart sleeping against the side of the chariot, Pit and Palutena mentally preparing for the mission ahead of them.

* * *

**Well, this ought to be interesting to write. I actually started writing this idea even before I put out the chapter where Pit got attacked. I put out the chapter between this one and the angry mob chapter partly because I was buying time for this one, partly because I intended to have such a chapter anyway, may as well put it there. At first I didn't think anything of the laurels, they were just going to be fixed and that's the end of it. Then I realized that they created an excellent opportunity for an adventure. The legend of Daphne did not occur to me right away, I have to thank my sister RedNemi (she hangs out in the Zelda section) for that part. Then I had a hard time creating obstacles for Pit and/or Dart to overcome. After a lot of mental rumination the whole nightmare thing and the siren thing kind of came out of nowhere. I did not connect sirens to that one until after the concept came to me. I literally have no idea how I came up with either.**

**Speaking of RedNemi, you may have noticed the guest in the reviews boasting that they've found me. Yeah, that's her. That's a long story.**

**Funshine, I get watched by ducks all the time. If I'm outside, they keep a very close eye on me.**


	14. Nightmare

Pit woke up feeling oddly cocooned. He was warm, but felt like he'd wrapped his blankets around himself in his sleep. His head also felt a bit fuzzy.

He also seemed to be standing upright.

Wait, what?!

Pit opened his eyes. He was not in his room, where he'd fallen asleep. This was… an island in the middle of Skyworld. He tried to move, but was completely immobilized. Pit looked down and found shiny material wrapped around his body. He couldn't see behind him because his blanket had been draped over his head like a hood, but if he recalled correctly there was a pillar here.

Pit was Saran-wrapped to a pillar.

"DART!" he bellowed. He heard some snickering and looked to see a few centurions laughing at him. Most of them thoroughly enjoyed watching the rivalry between the twins and were perfectly willing to laugh at either's expense.

"Let me down, will you?" he asked them.

"Just a minute, captain."

One of them pulled out a camera, and the rest started snickering again.

"Oi! Who said anything about pictures?!" Pit yelled as the centurion circled around, taking pictures from all angles. Then he nodded to another and took off, afraid that Pit would take the camera away. The other centurion approached Pit and cut off the Saran wrap.

Finally, Pit was loose and took stock of his situation. He was in his pajamas with his blanket wrapped around him, the end having been draped over his head as was already mentioned. So, Dart had somehow gotten him out of bed with a blanket and wrapped him to this pillar, all without waking him up.

Talk about waking up on the wrong side of the bed.

Pit stalked off to the structure that had his room and Dart's room, then barged into his twin's room, slamming the door open to wake him up. Dart jumped out of bed, his red eyes wide and took in the scene. Pit, glaring daggers at him trailing a blanket with plastic wrap stuck to it. He relaxed and began to smirk.

"Who let you out? I do hope they got pictures." he said conversationally.

"The centurions cut the plastic off me. And yes, they did get pictures." Pit snapped.

"Good, I hope you looked good and mad in them. Mine just have you slumped over and snoring."

"I'd ask why you have pictures, but the better question is WHAT THE HELL?!" Pit finished shouting. He heard laughing again, and stomped over to the window. Centurions had gathered nearby to listen to Pit yell at his twin. He flipped them off (which only served to amuse them even more), then turned back to Dart.

"Well?!" he demanded.

Dart crossed his arms and looked smug.

"I told you. I was gonna wait until you didn't expect it, then get my revenge."

Pit's expression turned confused, then his eyes widened in realization.

"Wait, you mean when I tripped you?"

Dart nodded. "Yeah, and I figured you can't get too mad considering what you did to my nose the other day."

Pit glared at him. "Watch me. How long was I out there, exactly? And how did you get me out there without waking me up?" he demanded to know.

"Back before I came here, Viridi showed me a plant that would help you sleep. I spiked your dinner last night. About an hour after you went to sleep, I put you out there."

"I could have frozen out there!"

Dart frowned.

"I was very careful to make sure nothing of the sort would happen. Nothing was uncovered except for your face. And were you actually cold when you woke up?"

Pit paused, ready to retort until Dart had asked that question.

"No, I guess not." Pit allowed.

"So, there's no problem." Dart concluded. Pit wasn't convinced, though.

"Don't think I've forgiven you." he warned. The dark angel shrugged, frowning slightly, then pushed him out of the room so he could change. There was a chilly silence during breakfast, then Dart finally couldn't stand it anymore as they headed to meet Palutena to talk about their mission.

"Ok seriously, Pit, cut it out. I owed you revenge, you can at least take it gracefully."

"Seriously, drugging me and putting me outside! What if something had attacked?!"

Dart threw his hands up and looked up at the sky. Bad idea. He tripped over a tree root and faceplanted with a yelp. Pit stopped and waited for him to get up instead of helping him up.

"Hello, dirt. And how are we today?" Dart spoke conversationally to the ground.

Pit raised an eyebrow.

"Are you talking to the dirt?"

"It's a better conversationalist than you!"

Pit tsked and shoved him over onto his back as he tried to get up, then walked away.

"You're an asshole!" Dart yelled after Pit. Then he turned his head to the side.

"We meet again." he said loudly to the dirt.

"Is it responding?" Pit yelled back, sarcastically.

Dart stood up, brushing himself off.

"It's being a hell of a lot nicer to me than you are!"

Pit ignored this and kept walking. Dart trotted after him to catch up, then spoke again.

"So, to get back to your question earlier, if something had attacked Skyworld, the centurions would have helped you. Really, you're blowing this way out of proportion."

Pit ignored him again. Dart shook his head, annoyed with Pit's cold shouldering. Neither spoke until they got to Palutena.

"Ah, there you are. Are you boys ready for your mission?"

"Yes, Lady Palutena!" Pit said, smiling brightly at her.

"Good. I've spoken with Viridi, and she'll come to guide you two in about an hour.

Pit saluted her, then ran off before Dart could follow him. Dart glared after him, catching Palutena's attention.

"Trouble?" she inquired. The dark angel turned to her.

"I got revenge on him, and he's mad at me now."

"He'll forgive you." she said instantly, not even asking what had happened.

"How do you know that?" he asked, surprised.

"I think there's very little you could do that Pit wouldn't eventually forgive you for."

Dart chewed his lip, thinking about this. Then he nodded a bit and ran after his twin.

An hour later, the twins were geared up with packs that had food and water and other essentials. They stood eagerly awaiting Viridi so they could go on their mission.

"Ok, so both of you, stay together because I can only pull you both out if Pit stays with Dart. Viridi will be here in a moment, she will give us more specifics on what will happen. Pit, you have the antidote?"

They'd decided that as a precaution, Pit should carry the antidote in case they got separated. If worst came to worst, Dart could be pulled out. Pit checked his bag, and had it.

"Ah, there are my favorite chickens!"

Viridi could never resist greeting them by saying something annoying.

Both boys vocally protested this treatment as the goddesses laughed at them.

"You all ready for your trip?" Viridi asked. "Got the antidote? Food? Water? Clean underwear?"

They both simply glared about the last item.

"I take it you forgot clean underwear, then? It's ok, I'll wait while you go get it."

"Let's _not_ talk about my underwear. So, how are we getting down?" questioned Pit. "We can't be flying, because only Dart has laurels."

"Oh, you'll love this." Viridi announced. "Good old-fashioned parachutes!"

Palutena handed each angel a pack that contained a parachute.

"It is so embarrassing that we, as angels, need parachutes." muttered Dart. Pit silently agreed, although he was still not speaking to his brother. They strapped the parachutes on, then waited for further instructions.

"Ok, you should go one at a time so you don't get tangled. Who wants to go first?"

"I'll go." offered Dart. He turned to the open doors and took a running leap out. He made it down without incident, then after pulling himself free of the deployed parachute, turned his face upwards to look for Pit. His twin landed some distance away, so Dart hiked over to find him. When he got there, Pit was tangled in his lines. Dart immediately made his way over to help him.

"Go away! I don't need your help!" Pit yelled, still mad at Dart and even angrier because he couldn't get out. Dart raised an eyebrow, then pulled out his bow and quickly sliced through the lines. Pit shot him a murderous glare and untangled himself. At this point, Viridi spoke up.

"Pit, you seem moody. What gives?"

Dart smirked and relayed this to Pit, who couldn't hear anything the goddesses had to say.

"I woke up this morning Saran wrapped to a pillar in the middle of Skyworld, that's what's wrong!"

Viridi laughed. Palutena laughed too, although she disapproved somewhat. Dart rolled his eyes.

"Ok, so where are we going here?" he asked Viridi.

"Ok, let me see. The road winds somewhat, and you shouldn't leave it. I know, I'll make an arrow like Palutena usually does. It'll show you the best way to go."

A few seconds later, an arrow appeared leading them in a seemingly arbitrary direction.

"You're obviously not on the road now, so it'll lead you there then down the right direction."

Dart nodded, then started in the arrow's direction. He glanced back and told Pit about the arrow, then both followed it. Shortly, they came out on a road which the arrow pointed them down. Dart chatted with the goddesses a bit, and tried to talk to Pit. He failed.

Geez, he thought. Pit can be really stubborn when he wants to be. He supposed he could apologize, but one, he didn't want to. Two, Pit could just take it and laugh. It _had_ been retaliation. The funny thing was, if Pit had been nicer, Dart probably would have already apologized. Him getting mad and going off at Dart like that only served to make the dark twin stubborn, which in turn upped Pit's stubbornness. Eventually one of them would have to break.

He was startled out of his thoughts by Viridi's announcement that they had arrived at the protected area. From here on out, they'd have to watch every step they took. The twins proceeded carefully, giving any plants on the path a wide berth. About twenty minutes in, Pit of all people noticed something wrong.

"Hey, Dart." he called. The dark angel stopped, surprised that Pit was speaking to him.

"Something feels off." he stated. Both angels looked around, and listened carefully as Dart trusted that if Pit thought something was wrong, then something was probably wrong. He was correct.

"Boys, I see something in the trees. I don't know what they are, but there's a lot of them." Palutena quickly warned. Dart relayed this to Pit, since the light angel had no connection to the goddesses.

The twins looked at each other, worried, before Dart moved to stand at Pit's back. Pit frowned at him, indicating that he'd fight alongside Dart, but he was still mad. Dart hissed slightly in annoyance, but turned his attention to the trees. He could see something very odd moving in them.

A few eerily quiet seconds passed.

Suddenly, a bunch of bizarre creatures jumped out at them all at once. Both angels yelled in surprise while simultaneously reacting to the attack. Both performed run of the mill slashes with their separated bows, experimenting to see what worked on these things.

Dart was trying to puzzle out what they were. They were identical humanoid figures, all completely translucent but distorted whatever you could see through them. It seemed they were quite frail, and were dispatched with just one hit. They were even worse than the centurions, relying entirely on numbers. He couldn't even begin to guess how many there were. Dart slashed one, and his arm suddenly was doused in cold water. He frowned, and looked more closely at them.

They were made of water?

"Hey, Pit!" he yelled.

"I'm kind of busy, what do you want?!" Pit yelled back.

"Is is just me, or are these things made of water?" he asked. Pit was silent for several seconds.

"I think you're right." Pit replied.

"So I guess this means we're on the right track." Dart said. "Daphne's father is a river spirit, right?"

"Yeah, that makes sense. Now stop bothering me." Pit commanded, pissing Dart off. They were in the middle of a fight, now is not the time to be holding grudges.

They didn't notice it, but the fight was slowly but steadily moving. The goddesses didn't notice this either, to focused on the actual fighting to see that the water soldiers were actually subtly herding the angels. To what end, they'll all find out shortly.

The number of soldiers was slowly decreasing, both angels were relieved to see that it seemed that no more were being spawned. They had been settled into a pattern of slashing because it seemed the water soldiers weren't very creative and used the same moves over and over again.

Suddenly, out of nowhere, a group of them threw themselves at Dart from the side. The attack caught him by surprise and he fell down with his face to the dirt. He tried to get up, but there was a pressure on his back. Before he could try to get up, a weird smell invaded his nostrils, followed almost instantly by a heavy drowsiness. Before he could wonder about the smell, he was unconscious.

Pit heard a yell, and turned to find Dart lying on the ground with a few of the soldiers pinning him down. He took a moment to slash at them before turning back to his own fight. A few moments later, something hit him from behind and he automatically hit the soldier that had come up behind him.

Pit was about to make a jab at Dart for letting one of these things through when he turned and saw his twin still lying motionlessly on the ground. A spike of fear instantly pushed out any animosity towards him. Pit ran over and swatted the soldiers away from him.

Pit kept fighting, stepping around Dart to push the enemy back on all sides. With his brother completely helpless, Pit became vicious, ready to murder anything that even thought about coming close to the unconscious angel.

The numbers thinned out under Pit's assault, and eventually Pit dispatched the last one. This left Pit, Dart, and the entire area soaking wet, but Pit hardly noticed as he knelt down worriedly to try to wake his twin up.

He turned Dart over, but saw no injuries. He shook the angel, but Dart didn't respond to this. He was breathing normally, though. Finally, it occurred to Pit to take Dart's laurels and ask the goddesses what happened.

"Finally! I thought you'd never put those laurels on! Move him, _now_!" Viridi commanded.

Pit was startled by the instant outburst, and obeyed. Once he'd dragged Dart some distance away, he began speaking to them.

"What happened to him? Did he get hurt?" Pit asked.

"No, no. Apparently Ladon is a little more crafty than I gave him credit for. Dart was right that Ladon created those soldiers, but their purpose wasn't to fight you, exactly. They were supposed to overwhelm you and shove you into the fungus I mentioned. That's what happened, they shoved Dart face first into it. Now that he's out of it, he'll recover but he breathed in a fair amount. I think with that amount it'll probably take more than an hour for him to wake up, but not too much more. You're just going to have to wait."

Pit was still worried, but busied himself getting their clothes dry. It was sunny, so he took off his outer tunic and Dart's, and spread them out on the ground. Then he also stretched out on the ground so his shirt and shorts could dry. He made sure to roll Dart over so his clothes could dry evenly too.

All there was to do was wait.

* * *

Dart woke up to his door being slammed. He jumped out of bed, his red eyes wide and took in the scene. Pit, glaring daggers at him trailing a blanket with Saran wrap stuck to it. He relaxed and began to smirk.

"Who let you out? I do hope they got pictures." he said conversationally.

"The centurions let me out. No they didn't get pictures, I sent them to go tell Lady Palutena what you did to me. You've been a nuisance since you got here, but there's a line Pittoo."

"Hey, don't call me Pittoo." Dart frowned.

"Being called Pittoo is about to be the least of your problems. I'm sick and tired of putting up with you, and so is Lady Palutena. I'm done being nice. Lady Palutena told me at the beginning that you weren't worth the effort. It seems like she was right."

Dart had no response because he simply couldn't believe Pit would say those things to him. Pit turned to the door because he could hear footsteps hurrying down the hallway. Palutena arrived, looking concerned as she leaned down to check on her angel.

"Pit, are you alright?!" she exclaimed. "The centurions told me you were tied to a pillar outside all night!"

"I'm fine, Lady Palutena. Apparently _he_ thought it would be funny." Pit accused, pointing at the confused dark angel.

"Well, yeah. I had to get you back for tripping me and breaking my nose." he tried to explain, realizing that things were serious.

"Quiet, clone." Palutena snarled, protectively holding Pit close to her. Dart shut his mouth, astonished. Palutena had never referenced his origin unless it was pertinent to the conversation. Certainly she had never used it as a put down. In fact, she'd never insulted him outside of light teasing before.

"You seem to be getting big ideas about your importance around here. This will never do. I've tolerated your presence here because Pit wanted to give you a chance, but you've gone too far. We're going to have to find something else to do with you. I can't have you risking Pit like this."

Dart's eyes widened with pleading and fear.

"No- I didn't mean it. Pit, you know I wouldn't hurt you. Please." he begged his twin. Pit regarded him with a mix of repulsion and superiority.

"I guess you were right, Lady Palutena. I'm better off without him. I don't want to kill him, though."

"Oh, I think we can find someplace for him. We'll just have to make sure he can't ever come back. I'll go prepare to send him away. You make sure he doesn't try to escape."

Palutena left the room and Pit stood across the room from Dart and didn't look away from him.

"Pit, for god's sake. I'm sorry, I won't do it again. Don't send me away."

"Pittoo, I tried to give you a chance. You blew it. Now you have to pay the price."

"C'mon, Pit. I'm your brother." he begged.

"Whatever gave you that idea? You are an incomplete clone of me. I know tried to make you comfortable here, but I'm sorry if I gave you ideas that simply aren't true."

Dart sat down weakly, feeling like he'd been punched in the gut. Much though he wanted to, he couldn't deny what Pit had said.

"But Pit-"

"Quiet. I don't want to hear any more from you. I've let you be too free with speaking to me in the past. Apparently that was a mistake, and I'm stopping it now."

He sat silently on the bed, in shock, until Palutena returned.

"Come with me, Pit. Bring Pittoo." she commanded. Pit gestured to him to follow. Dart found himself wishing Pit would grab his arm and enthusiastically drag him along like he normally would. He followed the pair miserably, trying to figure out what went wrong and not even noticing the centurions they passed all glaring disapprovingly at him. They came to a room with a wide table.

"Lie there, face down." Palutena commanded the dark angel.

"Why?" he asked, uneasy. She signaled Pit, who grabbed him and forced him onto the table. Before he could do anything, straps held his arms and legs down.

"What are you doing to me?!" he asked, panicking.

"Making sure you can't come back." the goddess answered.

A hand grabbed his wing, then he heard a crunch and his back exploded with pain. He yelled as the warm feeling of blood ran down his back and felt another stab of pain. Neither Palutena nor Pit responded to his yelling. They wrapped him up to control the bleeding that resulted from them lopping off his wings. By the time they were done he was too weak from blood loss to yell anymore.

They lifted him from the table and leaned him against the wall. He saw his bloody wings lying on the floor in his blurry vision. He felt his laurels being taken from his hair. A figure stood in front of him, and he slowly lifted his head to look at it.

Pit stood there, and looked at Dart with vaguely pitying eyes.

"I'm sorry, Pittoo, but you did this to yourself. We'll set you in the overworld, you'll have to live with the humans. Lady Palutena is being kind enough to give you some food and money to get you started."

Pit tossed a sack into his lap, then turned and walked away, kicking the black wings to the side. A few moments later, his surroundings vanished in a bright light and he appeared sitting against a tree.

"Viridi" he tried calling. Despite the fact that his laurels were gone, she responded.

"Don't bother trying to plead with me, Pittoo. Pit tried to give you a good home, and you repaid him by tying him to a pillar. Pit is my friend, I can't side with anyone as awful to him as you."

"But I thought you were my friend, too." he protested.

"You can't be friends with someone who isn't a real person."

And with that, she was gone.

After a few minutes, he was lucky enough to be found by a passing human.

"Help me." he rasped, too weak to get up and do anything. The man looked at him, considering until Dart looked up at him.

"Ugh, what's wrong with you?! Your eyes! You've been tainted, I'm having nothing to do with you!" The man left in a hurry. Dart took some time to process what had happened. He let his head hang down again.

He entreated other passerby, but all of them left him when they saw his 'evil' red eyes, afraid that helping him would bring misfortune on them.

Night fell, and Dart gave up on someone helping him. He drew his knees up to his chest, and rested his forehead on them. He sat there, abandoned and maimed by the people he thought cared. Tears leaked out of his eyes as he let sleep claim him.

* * *

Pit was dozing when he heard Dart cry out. He sat up in alarm to see his twin also sitting up, his eyes full of pain and fear. The dark angel turned to Pit.

"Pit!" he gasped. "I'm sorry I tied you to that pillar and left you out all night! I'm sorry!" He stared pleadingly at Pit with wide eyes, gasping.

"I forgive you! It's alright, bro!" Pit responded instantly, confused as to why Dart was suddenly so upset about that. He scrambled over to sit by the dark angel, who he now saw had tears in his eyes and still looked terrified. Pit was suddenly very worried. He'd never seen his twin cry before. That fungus must have done something truly terrible to him.

"It's alright. You're ok. Whatever you saw, it didn't actually happen." Pit reassured, hugging his twin tightly to calm him down. Dart didn't push him away, like he normally would. Pit kept talking to him and he eventually began to breathe normally, and slowly relaxed.

"I'm really sorry about this morning." he murmured to Pit. Pit's eyebrows drew together. What exactly had he dreamed of? What had Pit done to make him so scared in the dream? Whatever it was, Pit had to try to reassure him now.

"It really is ok. I was just mad because I was the butt of the joke. I'll think it's funny tomorrow. It was a bit over the top, but I know you made sure I wasn't in danger. I know you wouldn't hurt me."

The dark angel sighed, his brain slowly pushing the nightmare away. It had felt so real that even though he now knew it to be a dream, it would take some time to convince himself that it hadn't happened. Pit would never want him sent away. Palutena, far from placing Pit above Dart, had been mad at Pit for breaking his nose. Viridi had thought the prank was funny, along with the centurions.

None of them believed he was a lesser person because of his origin.

All of them cared very much for him.

Pit hesitantly let go of him and leaned back. Pit looked at Dart's face, relieved to see that he looked much calmer. His red eyes widened briefly and he looked back and flapped his wings. He gave a sigh of relief to see that they were there still.

Pit had an idea. He turned around and grabbed his bag. "Here" he said, handing Dart a sandwich and taking one himself. "Food makes everything better." he stated. Dart grinned a bit and took the sandwich, realizing that he actually was hungry. Pit paused, then took off the laurel crown.

"They want to talk to you." he said, handing it to Dart.

"Hey, Dart. You alright?" Viridi asked. He winced.

"How much of that did you see?" he asked.

"Everything. That was pretty intense, do you want to come back and try again some other day?" Palutena offered. Dart shook his head.

"No, I'll be fine in a bit. We should try to finish this today."

"Do you want to talk about it?"

This question came from Pit. Dart considered it for several seconds.

"Not now." he decided. "Maybe later, but now is not the time for me to work through that."

All three accepted that and didn't ask him any more questions. Pit spent the meal trying to make Dart laugh, which the dark angel recognized and appreciated. When they finished eating, the pair set off again, following the arrow. Pit stayed very close to his twin, still feeling edgy and overprotective.

They spent an uneventful hour just walking. Eventually, a scent reached their nostrils.

"Hey…do you smell that?" asked Dart to Pit. Pit frowned and sniffed the air.

"Yeah, it smells kinda sweet." he observed. "And there's a purple haze in the air up there." he added, pointing.

"You've reached the poisoned pathway." Viridi announced. "Once you start, move quickly and don't stop until you get out." she advised.

The twins looked at each other, then at the fog with apprehension.

"You ready for this, bro?" asked Pit.

* * *

**Remember spirit week in high school? Every year in band, at least one freshman got Saran wrapped to a pole. Or a chair. Or something else that made it impossible to escape. The director was usually the one to release the poor freshman. Ok, usually the kid is laughing his ass off as this is happening, nobody would force them if they really didn't want to. It was, and probably still is, a tradition.**

**If you caught the Ink reference, you are probably an awesome person. Jacob the Pathfinder FTW!  
**

**Took me forever to come up with a good nightmare for Dart. It really freaked him out. Still one more chapter to go in this arc.**

**The last chapter peaked at 119 views on the day I published it. This is the first time I've broken 100 views in a day. This gave me a huge ego boost and I felt really good about myself for the rest of the day. I've come a long way from 19 views when I published the first chapter, 23 views the second day. Naturally, I can't get those numbers without readers deciding my writing is worth their time. So thank you very much, my readers. You make my day. I hope I can continue to entertain you for a while yet. Heh, I have a notepad list full of ideas that I can write about. I don't think I'll be running out soon.**


	15. Knock on Wood

The twins stared at the purple fog covering the path.

"Ok you two, move as quickly as you can. I'll tell you when you can stop, and try to breathe in as little as possible."

Pit and Dart nodded, then took off. The sweet smell that heralded the poison grew stronger as they moved into it. Their surroundings didn't change from what they'd been passing through for the past hour, and fortunately nothing showed up.

Ladon had ensured that the first defense would work by using his soldiers to force Dart into it. Perhaps he thought this one would work well enough without his help. It was true that if they hadn't been warned that it was poison, they might have sat around and enjoyed the poison filling their lungs.

A little while later, Pit stumbled a bit. He didn't fall though, so it took Dart a moment to process that Pit wasn't a clumsy person and something was wrong there.

Well, he knew that. They _were_ being poisoned. Now that he thought about it, it took him longer than usual to notice something was off. So the poison wasn't just affecting Pit.

"Careful, Pit." he decided to voice his concerns. "I think it's slowing our brains down."

The second part took a little longer than he intended to say.

"I feel kind of sleepy." Pit slurred.

"You guys are almost at the end. Just a bit further." Viridi informed Dart.

Pit tripped again. Dart didn't stop right away, as his foggy brain had slowed his reflexes. He turned when Palutena and Viridi both shouted at him to stop.

Pit was struggling weakly against a net that had him pinned to the ground. Dart stumbled back to help him and noticed a root behind Pit's foot. It took him several seconds to comprehend that Pit had tripped over that and triggered one of the traps Viridi had warned them about.

Dart shook his head in an attempt to clear it, and resisted the urge to lie down and go to sleep. Then he pulled out his bow and used it to cut through the net, which was made of woven vines. Pit stopped struggling once he saw Dart working on cutting him free, and he started falling asleep because he was doing nothing else to keep himself awake.

Dart worked single mindedly at the vines, unable to think much past that. He kept cutting vines even after he'd done enough to get Pit out until Palutena broke his focus on them and reminded him to pull his brother out of the tangle. He did, then tried to shake Pit awake. Unfortunately, Pit was too far gone for him to wake enough to walk. Dart was too tired to think of what to do until Viridi urged him to try to pick the other angel up and move forward.

This became his new focus, and he managed to pull Pit's arms over his shoulders and carry him on his back. Pit's feet were dragging, but Dart didn't notice as he struggled to take each step. He fell over once, and only got back up because the goddesses both screamed desperately at him to keep going. He couldn't even remember where he was going anymore, or why. All there was to his world was Pit, the road, and purple fog. The fog was everywhere.

Dart kept walking, kept dragging Pit. The goddesses kept encouraging him, and eventually the purple faded. He vaguely registered this, but didn't think about why this was until he finally noticed Viridi speaking to him.

"Dart, you got through! Stop walking right now and take that antidote!" she cried for about the fifth time. He hadn't heard her the other times, and only did now because the fresh air was waking him up a bit.

Dart collapsed, then turned around. He took the bag off of the sleeping Pit and upended it. He stared uncomprehendingly at the contents for several seconds before forcing himself to pick up the bottle he recognized as the antidote to the purple fog. He opened the bottle and took a few mouthfuls. Dart nearly spilled it, though, so he set it aside to let what he'd drunk take effect.

Several minutes later, Viridi got his attention and reminded him to drink some more, and get Pit to drink the rest. He was feeling somewhat better by now, and had no problem drinking out of the bottle without spilling it. Dart rolled Pit over and shook him. He shook Pit harder. He shouted in Pit's face.

Finally, he slapped Pit as hard as he could.

Pit flinched and his hands jerked up to his face. He opened his eyes a bit and groaned. Dart wasted no time. He propped up the light angel and forced the drink down his throat. Pit never fully awoke and promptly fell asleep again when he was finished.

This accomplished, exhaustion set in again and Dart wanted nothing more than to go to sleep. He sluggishly pulled their blankets and some mats out and managed to get Pit onto one and tossed a blanket over him.

Dart never made it back to his bag to get his own blankets out. He collapsed onto the ground and fell asleep there, taking no notice of the goddesses trying to tell him to at least take a blanket.

* * *

Pit woke up first the next morning, feeling stiff and achy. He had no memory past getting caught by the net, but supposed that Dart had managed to pull him out. Speaking of which…

Pit looked around and spotted Dart curled up on the ground, fast asleep. Pit stood up, a little unsteady, and went to go check on him. After ascertaining that Dart was very cold, he pulled the dark angel to his recently vacated bed and covered him up. Pit's eyes fell on the laurels and he eagerly took them and put them on.

"Good morning, Pit." Palutena greeted him.

"Lady Palutena! What happened? The last thing I remember is being caught by a net, and Dart cutting through it."

"He got you both out of the poison fog. It was quite a monumental effort on his part. We were afraid we'd have to pull you two back, which would have been a shame. But Dart did it, and he took his half of the antidote and got you to drink yours."

"Huh. I don't remember drinking anything." Pit commented.

"You didn't really wake up." she explained. "He had to resort to smacking you really hard to get you conscious enough to drink."

Pit grinned a little.

"Either that, or he just wanted an excuse to smack me really hard and get away with it."

Palutena laughed.

"I suppose that's always possible, but I watched him. You didn't respond to anything else."

"I'm still going to accuse him when he wakes up."

"You do that, Pit."

"Why was Dart just lying on the ground, though? He was freezing cold. I was covered up."

"That poison really took a toll on you both. After getting you in bed, he just kind of passed out."

"Oh." Pit glanced at his twin, newly concerned.

"He'll be ok." she reassured Pit.

"Why was it so bad, though? I thought Viridi said it wouldn't be too bad."

"You spent longer than we anticipated in there. If you hadn't gotten caught, you two would have gotten out much more quickly."

Pit's face fell. "So it's my fault he's like this?"

"Don't blame yourself, Pit. Dart will be fine, and you did as well as you could. If the tree root had happened to be in front of him, he would have tripped over it too."

"I guess." he muttered.

"So, are you feeling well enough to keep going?" asked Palutena, changing the subject.

Pit considered this. He stretched to test out his movement and muscles.

"Yeah, I think I'm good. Not 100%, but pretty good, all things considered."

"Then your brother will probably be fine when he wakes up. He was looking better before he even fell asleep."

Pit nodded, then looked around for his bag to get breakfast. He frowned when he saw it lying empty, with the contents dumped out on the ground.

"Dart had to get the antidote out. He wasn't especially coordinated." the goddess explained.

Pit didn't answer. He gathered up his things and repacked the bag. He ate his breakfast, then chatted with Palutena and Viridi, who showed up later.

Eventually, Pit heard a groan from the dark angel, and saw him stir.

"That's twice now on this trip I've had to wait for you to wake up. You lazy-" Pit started teasing Dart until he saw the expression on his face. A muted version of the pain and fear he'd woken up with the day before.

"Hey, you ok?" Pit asked concernedly. Dart sat up and put his head in his hands. After a moment he glanced at Pit, and relaxed somewhat.

"Yeah. Bad dream."

"Like the one you had yesterday?" Pit pressed. Dart looked at him.

"Is it that obvious?" he wondered.

"It is to me."

Dart smiled a bit and shook his head lightly. He started to stand up.

"You sure you don't want to talk about it?" Pit asked anxiously. Dart shook his head again in answer. Pit frowned.

"How am I supposed to help if I don't know what's bothering you?" he asked, slightly frustrated. Dart paused.

"You are helping, by being you." he said carefully. The implication of this statement went over Pit's head, but the listening goddesses caught it. They understood that at the very least, Pit had behaved disturbingly out of character in Dart's nightmare. It had scared and hurt him, and the remedy to this was Pit behaving normally.

Pit looked hurt.

"I don't understand why you won't talk to me."

If nothing else, Pit knew that Dart's answer had been an avoidance.

Dart's eyebrows wrinkled in thought. Pit was quite right that Dart didn't want to talk to him about it, but not for the reasons that Pit supposed. Pit had shown a great capacity for feeling guilt when he was used to cause pain, even if it wasn't his fault. Hence the disaster with the townspeople a few weeks ago. Pit had seen how badly Dart was affected by the nightmare. If Pit knew that he'd inadvertently caused it, he would never forgive himself. Even if he'd literally done nothing, it was just him in a dream.

So Dart fully intended to never tell Pit exactly what had happened in his dream. At least, not for a long time. But Pit was being Pit again, that is to say overly sensitive. How can Dart get him to let it go, without making him feel shut out?

"Look, I just don't want to talk about it. It's bad enough that I'm dreaming about it, without having to tell everyone about it."

"Oh." Pit said quietly. "I'm sorry, I shouldn't push you. I guess I didn't think about how you would feel about it. I'll stop now." He smiled and turned to his bag to rummage for food to give to Dart.

Dart took a moment to facepalm at the irony. The only way to get Pit to stop, so Dart could spare him the guilt (even though he'd done nothing wrong) was to… make him feel guilty, even though he'd done nothing wrong. He felt bad for leading Pit to the wrong conclusion, but Pit would feel much worse if he knew the truth.

The goddesses, observant as ever, caught the gist of what was going on here. They stayed silent because even if they didn't know the specifics, they figured Dart had a good reason to avoid talking to Pit.

The twins set off again, after Dart had breakfast and they repacked everything. Palutena's prediction that Dart would be fine was correct. Like Pit, he'd had better days but was feeling well enough to continue their journey.

"So, we've passed the fungus that causes nightmares." Pit said. "We got through the poison. All we have left to go through is the spell at the river."

"Yep." confirmed Viridi. "You should be at the end in an hour, provided nothing untoward happens."

Dart stopped abruptly, Pit following suit although he hadn't heard Viridi so he didn't know why.

"… you did not just say that." said Dart, looking dumbfounded.

"What?" asked a confused Pit. Dart repeated what the goddess of Nature had told him. Pit's jaw dropped.

"Seriously, Viridi? Even _I_ know better than to say something like that." Pit told her.

"You're practically begging for trouble." added Dart.

Pit rushed to the trees and knocked on one. Satisfied, he walked back to his brother and they continued on.

"Wait, did you just…knock on wood?" Viridi asked over Palutena's laughter.

"Yes!" Dart yelled back. "He had to get rid of the bad luck you wished on us!"

"Are you trying to get us killed?!" added Pit.

"Some people…" muttered Dart. Pit snorted in agreement.

"I…give up." said Viridi. Dart smirked a bit.

Before long, they came upon the last defense.

"Do you hear that?" Dart said, holding his arm out to stop Pit. The light angel listened, and heard a voice up ahead.

"Yes I do, and stop listening to it." Pit said, stepping behind Dart and putting his hands over his twin's ears then pushing him forward.

"Ok, Pit. I get the point."

Pit stepped back over to Dart's side and they continued forward. The voice became clearer and it turned out to be offering them…the ability to fly on their own. How original.

Dart knew what the voice was, and that it was dangerous and lying to him. But at the same time he observed with fascination as another part of his mind told him that maybe there was something to it. The voice had compulsion mixed into it, so no matter what he knew, he still felt compelled to believe it.

Mentally prepared as both angels were, they passed by without incident.

What they didn't count on was Ladon having another method of getting victims caught by the drowning spell. Like the fungus, he had a method of getting victims near enough for the defense to work. The voice was a completely different spell from the drowning one. He also had another, more crude method.

A large bull, created from water like the soldiers the boys encountered earlier, came charging down the path. It made no sound prior to being triggered, so they had no time to react. It caught Dart and before they knew what had happened, it had thrown him into the river. The impact with the water knocked the wind out of him, and his laurels washed off into the water.

"Dart!" Pit shouted with surprise and alarm, running towards the river. Before he got there, the bull came running back with its head lowered, trying to toss Pit in the river after his brother. Meanwhile, Dart didn't stand a chance. The spell caught him and forced him under the surface of the water. He struggled, but it was ineffective.

Pit's reflexes came through for him, and he jumped out of the way. He pulled out his bow and spun to face the bull, crouched and ready to spring. The soldiers hadn't been very difficult to beat, and this thing was no more creative than its cousins. It turned out to be even less creative than a real bull, having literally only one strategy: charge from a great distance. Pit watched it run, then jumped to the side and slashed at it. He struck it, and although it was definitely hardier than the soldiers, he had injured it. It was leaking water out its sides in a manner reminiscent of bleeding. It took no notice of the 'injuries' though, and turned to attack Pit again. This time, he tried aiming for the neck. He had no idea if this thing had a jugular, but it couldn't hurt to find out.

Actually, it could hurt. It clipped him a little in the side with a horn, and he ended up missing. Pit collapsed to the ground for a moment, gasping and holding his side, then stood just in time to avoid getting caught in the bull's horns. He managed to get out of its way and inflict a shallow cut. He cursed himself for not paying better attention, because Dart-

Dart! Pit suddenly remembered that he'd been thrown in the river, and he couldn't see him anywhere! He had to end this, now!

Pit looked determinedly at the bull, which had decided to charge again. Ignoring his bruised side, Pit used his usual jump and slash routine, wounding it more. It was beginning to stagger as water continued to pour out of it at a heavier pace. Another pass nearly brought it to a stop, and Pit took the opportunity to chase it down and put an end to it.

The fight done, Pit raced to the river's edge. The water was deceptively calm, but Pit spotted Dart's laurels floating at the edge. He picked them up without thinking and put them on.

"Pit, he's down there!" Palutena wasted no time in exclamations of relief that he'd defeated the bull. "You can get him though. The spell is intended for just one victim, so it can't drown you because it's already gotten ahold of him. You don't have much time, go!"

Without further ado, Pit tossed the laurels onto the bank of the river and dove in. He didn't move for several moments, allowing his eyes to adjust to the underwater view. Pit finally spotted a dark form farther out into the river. He surfaced, then swam out to where he thought he'd seen the dark angel. He dove, and started kicking.

Pit could now see Dart below him, and kicked harder to get down to him. Dart was barely moving, and his eyes were open. They looked purple underwater. As he got closer though, Pit became utterly terrified to see that while his eyes were open, they were unfocused. His twin wasn't seeing anything. Dart's mouth was also open, his jaw was slack. He tried to call Dart, but forgot that he was under water and instead let some of his precious air out of his lungs.

This worked out better than intended, and Pit was able to sink faster. When he gripped his brother's arm, he hoped to get some response, but he instantly wished he hadn't gotten one.

Because the moment Pit touched Dart, his eyes closed.

Pit almost screamed at him again, but stopped himself. He shook the dark angel, and to his relief, Dart's eyelids fluttered and he focused on Pit for a moment. His arms jerked a bit. Pit held him tightly and kicked off of the bottom. They rose, and broke the surface. Pit gasped for breath, but… Dart didn't. He was completely limp. Pit wasted no time in dragging him back to the shore, and the moment they were on dry land, Pit turned him over and hit him on the back several times, hard. Dart made a choking noise and water started to run out of his mouth and nose. Pit held his head below his chest so the water would drain from his lungs. This turned out to be a good idea, because Dart also ended up vomiting, emptying his stomach of the water he'd swallowed and everything he'd eaten for breakfast. Within a minute, he was successfully breathing again, and Pit wordlessly dragged him down the path, away from the river for fear it would take them again. When he got Dart a good distance from the river, he set him down on the path and sat tiredly next to him.

For a long time, Dart just lay there, breathing raggedly and sometimes coughing, and Pit sat and watched him. Neither spoke. Eventually, he started to push himself onto his hands and knees. Pit stood up and helped him, then pulled him to a tree so he could sit against it. Pit sat and they just looked at each other for a few minutes.

"You…got rid of…that thing?" Dart finally croaked. Pit nodded. Then his eyes caught the other angel's dark hair and noticed that the laurels weren't there. He remembered that he'd tossed them onto the riverbank.

He couldn't leave them there, but he didn't want to leave his brother, either. Pit closed his eyes for a moment and sighed.

"I have to go get your laurels, bro. I'll be back." he said softly. Dart's face looked pained and pleading.

"No, don't…" but he stopped, knowing that Pit was right and anyway, he wouldn't be going far. He nodded to Pit.

Pit tried to stand, but without adrenalin to numb the pain and distract him, he finally felt the full effects of the bruise he'd gotten. Pit clutched his side and knelt, hissing in pain. Dart looked alarmed.

"You're hurt." he accused. Pit pulled his top up a little to reveal the large purple bruise on his side. Dart sucked in a breath and grimaced sympathetically.

"There's not really anything I can do about that." Pit stated, poking it slightly and wincing. "We didn't bring anything to wrap around it and everything's soaked, anyway."

He squinted a little at the dark angel.

"Don't you have any bruises? It bashed into you, too."

Dart poked a little at his stomach, and immediately winced. He pulled up his shirt to reveal a larger area of bruising than Pit's, but less severe. After examining it, he pulled his clothes back over it and looked back at Pit.

Pit sighed. Then he used a tree branch to slowly stand, and walked over to the river to fetch the laurel crown.

When he got back, he sat next to Dart, who slumped against him. He put the laurels on, but didn't hear anything at first.

"You guys there?" he asked dully.

"Yes…" both goddesses answered. There was silence for a moment.

"Oh, Pit. I don't know what to say!" Viridi cried out. "Dart almost died! But he didn't, but he's still not alright. Maybe we can bring him back now, and you can keep going. I don't think there's anything else you have to get through."

Pit presented this idea to Dart, but Dart shook his head.

"I can make it. What if there is something ahead? I don't want to leave you with nothing."

Pit tried to argue with him, but he couldn't bring himself to. He was too tired, and Dart was too weak to disagree with.

He also didn't want to make his twin get up and start moving, but Dart eventually insisted. He was able to walk, albeit unsteadily, and Pit helped keep him upright.

The walk to their destination was a long, arduous one but they eventually entered a clearing that housed a huge tree with shining golden leaves. The river ran through one part of it, and before the boys could do more than gape at the tree, a man stepped out of the river.

He was tall, with tanned skin and gray hair that hung to his neck. He had a beard to match, and his ancient face was covered with wrinkles.

The old man approached the boys, who had collapsed onto the ground, panting. He said nothing once he reached them, simply watched them impassively.

Finally Pit spoke.

"Are you Ladon?" he asked.

"I am. Who are you, and what have you come here for? I will listen to you, but I will not promise anything."

"I am Pit. I serve the goddess of Light, Lady Palutena."

Ladon nodded.

"I have not heard of you, but I know of Palutena. I have never met her, though."

"Pleased to meet you, Ladon." Palutena's voice rang in the clearing. Pit started.

"How can I hear you? I'm not wearing the laurels!"

Ladon gestured to the tree.

"My daughter's presence allows for your goddess to speak through her."

"Why did you turn her into a tree?" Pit blurted out before he could stop himself. Back at Palutena's temple, Palutena and Viridi simultaneously facepalmed. Dart fell down and banged his forehead on the ground several times.

Ladon ignored this and considered the angel with a sad look on his face.

"Although you have asked a question whose answer you have no business knowing, I will tell you anyway. I was possessive of my daughter, Daphne. I wanted her to stay by my side and be safe for the rest of her days. When she came to me, crying out for help as she was chased by Pyrrhon, I was blinded by fury. I sent my power out to her without form, and it took on my most basic desires. To keep her by my side, and safe for the rest of her days. I did not will her to become a tree, but my power took my desires and made it into a reality in that form."

The old man sighed.

"I was hasty, and I have had plenty of time to reflect on the consequences. I would change her back to her rightful form, if I could. But I cannot. All I can do is keep her safe."

He looked at the angels.

"You have made it through the magic I have in place to keep Daphne safe. I've been watching you. I surmise my relative, the goddess of Nature, has helped you. Nobody else would be able to provide you with the antidote you both took to counteract the effects of the poison I placed."

"Yes, Ladon. I've been guiding them." Viridi chimed in.

"My greetings to you, cousin. I hope you're well?"

"I am. I showed these two here because they wanted to ask for something." she said, bringing them all back to the reason for their visit. Pit stood, recognizing that it was his turn to talk.

"Um, yeah. I had a laurel crown that came from Daphne that Lady Palutena uses to talk to me and let me fly. But it got broken."

Pit pulled out his old laurel crown and held it out to Ladon.

"I was hoping to get a new one." he finished. The old man took the laurel crown, and examined it.

"How did you come by this?" Ladon questioned.

"Medusa, the goddess of Darkness, gave it to me quite a number of years ago." Palutena supplied.

"Ah. Your sister, correct?" he asked her. Palutena was slightly taken aback.

"Well, yes. How did you know?" she wanted to know.

"Medusa was acquainted with my daughter, too, in the old days. She provided the spell that attempted to lure you two boys into my river."

All four were speechless.

"Small world." Viridi finally commented. "She never mentioned Medusa to me, but I also didn't spend whole lot of time around her."

"Well, at the time she gave me the spell, I gave her a branch. It was larger than this wreath, however." he noted.

"She may not have used the whole branch. In fact, I'm rather surprised she gave it to me at all, if it was a memento. But she did want to help me, and she may have just given me part of it."

"Where is Medusa now?" asked Ladon. Palutena was silent for a moment.

"We became divided. We co-ruled Skyworld, but then we differed in our goals. She directly opposed mine, so we battled and I won."

The old man considered this for several moments.

"I may want to hear the whole story, one day, as her fate does concern me. But not today."

He turned to Dart.

"And you? You seem to have a laurel crown, yourself."

Dart nodded.

"It's a copy of his." he rasped, pointing to Pit and speaking as little as possible. His throat and lungs burned from drowning.

"I only came to help Pit, though."

The man regarded the two with interest, having noticed their resemblance to one another.

"Am I right in assuming you're related?"

"Short answer? We're twins. Long answer? He's my clone." Pit said.

"There seems to be a story there, too. But again, that's for another day. I have decided to give you what you ask for." he said unexpectedly.

It took Pit a few seconds to process that Ladon had said.

"Really?" he asked, starting to grin in relief. "That would be great."

Ladon turned and approached the tree. He laid a hand on the great trunk and regarded it with sadness for a moment. Then he reached and broke a shining branch from the tree and took it back to the angels.

"Here. Take care of it." he said, handing the branch to a wide eyed Pit. Pit looked from the branch to the river spirit.

"I will! Thank you, sir!" he said happily. Ladon smiled back, amused by Pit's high spirits.

"Thank you, Ladon. Ok, I'm bringing you two back now." Palutena said. Pit moved to where his twin was still sitting and grabbed onto his arm to be sure both would be taken home. The familiar light brought the angels back to Palutena's temple. Pit stood up, wincing.

"Here, Lady Palutena!" he said, taking the branch to her. Dart turned around to watch, but stayed on the floor. The goddess took the branch and examined it for a moment.

"This is exactly what we need." she approved, before laying it aside.

"You both need some attention first, though." she pointed out. Pit's eyes widened, and he turned and walked over to crouch by his brother.

"You need to be taken care of too, Pit!" Palutena reminded, approaching the twins. Pit looked at her, confused, until Dart poked his side gently.

"Ow. Oh, yeah. I forgot about that." Pit admitted.

"Oh yeah, I forgot that I got a massive bruise." mocked Viridi, having once again shown up, uninvited and armed with various healing concoctions, to give her opinion on their injuries.

"I swear, between the two of you, you're cleaning out my potions and bandages. You just can't seem to do anything without getting hurt." she accused.

"You really don't have to." Dart muttered. She stared at him for a moment, raising an eyebrow.

"I'm choosing to ignore the nonsense Pittoo's spouting." she announced. Dart glared at her, too tired to do anything else. She merely smirked.

"Up, you two! To the hot springs!" she commanded cheerfully. Dart groaned and Pit coaxed him up and in the direction of a hot spring. The day ended with both twins going to bed early while Palutena worked on making Pit a new laurel crown.

* * *

**Well, nobody said getting a new laurel wreath was going to be easy. And Dart just has horrible luck, doesn't he? It wouldn't be very interesting if nothing happened to either of them, though.**

**I have to wonder how it is I managed to write such short chapters in the beginning. I seem to be incapable of writing anything shorter than 3000 words now.**


	16. Fear the Tuba

**This took longer than intended, especially since I had the basic idea outlined literally months ago. I wanted a comic relief chapter after all the serious stuffs going on the last few chapters. I've still got more serious stuff up my sleeve, too.**

**I was a band kid in high school. I hail from the sousaphone section. Sousaphones are portable tubas, for those of you who don't know. There are more uses for sousaphones than providing bass for the music.**

* * *

It is early in the morning, and Dart has a sousaphone. Why, you might ask? He's not interested in playing it. He is, however, interested in making Pit jump about a foot in the air and possibly scream like a little girl. Dart has discovered that sousaphones can make a terrifically loud noise and had perfected this technique before going ahead with his plan. He had managed to quietly slip into Pit's room with his sousaphone (don't ask me how he managed this feat) and was now smirking at his brother's sleeping form. He drew in a deep breath and –

BLARGH! (sorry, I really can't find a better onomatopoeia for this)

"AAARGH! WHATTHEHELL! (feel free to tack on any other expletives you want)

Pit flipped out. Literally. Of bed. By the time he had stopped shouting, he was on the floor, completely tangled in his blankets, and was breathing hard. Dart was pointing and laughing hysterically, while leaning against the wall for support.

After a few seconds the scene sank in and Pit was pissed off.

"THE HELL WAS THAT?!" he roared at his laughing twin while untangling himself from the sheets.

"You shoulda seen the look on your face!" Dart managed to choke out.

"WHY?!"

"Well duh! Because it's funny!"

"Oh I'll show you funny…"

Pit had managed to extricate himself from the cotton prison he had awakened in (yeah, we're going with cotton sheets) and was now snarling as he approached the dark angel. Dart wisely chose this moment to, um, RUN FOR HIS LIFE but trying to make a quick getaway with a sousaphone does not work very well. And so the bell clanged against the doorway and he bounced back into Pit who used the opportunity to get in a few good punches. Nothing serious, just enough to teach his bro not to mess with him. (This is totally going to work and Dart will never pull a prank on Pit again, or disrespect him in any way. Right. Now, back to reality)

Pit had knocked Dart to the ground during the attack and now he had finished doling out the punishment.

"Ok, ok, I'm sorry. Wait, no I'm not. That was hilarious. I'm not sorry at all. You're fine, get over it."

So saying, Dart stood up(leaving the instrument on the floor), brushed himself off, and turned to face Pit, who was standing with his arms crossed and a scowl on his face.

"I'm still mad at you."

"You really shouldn't hold on to anger like that, it's unhealthy. You know I worry about your health, Pit."

Pit was unimpressed. It might have had something to do with Dart's self-satisfied smirk.

"You're an ass."

"This isn't news to me."

"I hate you."

"I can live with that."

Pit snorted at that.

"No, you can't."

Dart opened his mouth to retort, but then Pit raised an eyebrow and Dart closed it again and glared, defeated.

"What time is it, anyway?" Pit asked.

Both glanced at Pit's clock.

"Time for you to get up. So I effectively just did that. You're welcome."

Pit waved his arms at Dart.

"Shoo. I need to get dressed. I also need to kill you, but that can wait until I'm out of my pajamas."

"I do hope you wait until you've actually put your clothes on before killing me, and not _just_ until you're out of your pajamas. I don't want the last thing I see to be you with no clothes on and running in my direction. Or any direction. Really, I fervently hope to never in all my life be faced with such a horrific vision, in any context." He shuddered dramatically.

Pit shot his brother a murderous glare.

"I would advise that you refrain from running at your mirror naked in that case" he commented, pointing at the door. "You might get nightmares."

Dart laughed and walked out. A few minutes later, Pit was ready and he walked out and glanced into Dart's room.

"You gonna get that hunk of metal out of my room?" he asked.

"Later. I'm hungry." Dart said, waving his hand dismissively.

"I'm gonna charge rent for that thing."

"I'll pay you by waking you up each morning with it."

"I'll repay you by ending your life each morning with it."

"Yeah, but when you're looking at my lifeless body pathetically crumpled on the floor, you'll probably cry."

"Tears of hysterical laughter." Pit retorted. Then as an afterthought, he added "I might be upset over the bloodstain on my floor though."

"Why would there be a bloodstain on your floor, Pit?" The two had entered the kitchen and the goddess of Light had posed this question, not having heard the conversation that preceded it.

"Don't worry. It's a hypothetical bloodstain." Pit explained.

Palutena raised an eyebrow.

"From whom did this hypothetical bloodstain come?"

"Me" answered Dart, grabbing a bagel.

"Ah. I don't really need to ask why you might be bleeding on the floor of Pit's room, there are so many potential reasons."

"Pretty much" agreed Pit. He swiped Dart's bagel when his back was turned, took a bite out of it, and put it back down.

"So today's a run-of-the-mill training day, right?" Pit asked Palutena as his brother turned back and saw his bagel.

"Yep." she confirmed, "Nothing exciting today." Dart glared at Pit, who attempted to look innocent.

"Yeah, that was Pit" Palutena ratted. Dart suddenly snapped up the bagel and flung it at the culprit.

"Hey! You deserved that you know. Payback for earlier." Pit picked up the thrown bagel and took another bite as Dark picked out another bagel.

"Do I want to know?" wondered the goddess.

Both boys shrugged. "Nothing out of the ordinary. He decided to wake me up in a particularly rude manner this morning" answered Pit.

"Is this why he's hypothetically bleeding all over your floor?"

"Exactly."

"You two have such a great relationship. Where waking up results in one of your deaths" commented Palutena.

"I think it's pretty normal" agreed Dart.

All three snorted.

"Well, I'll leave you to it. I'd like it if you were both still alive at the end of the day."

With this, the goddess left the room. The twins made short work of their breakfast and headed out to work the centurions. They broke for lunch, then trained with new groups of centurions. After their work was done and both had cleaned up, the angels had some downtime before dinner. They chatted about anything as they returned to their rooms, and Pit opened his door when they arrived and both stepped in. Dart sprawled onto Pit's bed as Pit examined the sousaphone that had awakened him that morning.

"So where'd you get this again?" he asked.

His brother glanced at it.

"Oh. Palutena has a collection of musical instruments that I found a few weeks back. I was messing around with them when I discovered this one could be used for non-musical purposes, heh. It's not the only thing you can use, but it works pretty well. Obviously."

Pit had picked it up and was trying to put it on so he could try it.

"You gotta turn it this way" said Dart, getting up to help Pit with the instrument.

They'd spent the next half hour playing around with it when Pit wondered aloud how the centurions would have reacted if they'd been startled with it. At this, Dart's eyes widened and he grinned delightedly.

"Pit that's brilliant!"

"Wha?"

"Let's go get another one! We can hide somewhere where centurions pass and scare them! This may be the most amazing idea you've ever come up with, Pit!" He began to drag Pit out of the room and down the hallway.

"But that wasn't me!" Pit protested.

"Does it matter? We're still doing it. Where should we hide?"

Pit spluttered for a few more seconds before giving in. He thought about the question.

"We could hide behind that one line of shrubs, outside the training grounds. I think it'll work well enough, since they won't be looking out for… well… this." Pit said, indicating himself with the sousaphone.

They had reached the room Dart was looking for, and he quickly found another sousaphone. He took a moment to consider Pit's idea.

"Sounds good. Let's go."

They tried to look as inconspicuous as they could while carrying very large, shiny musical instruments. Fortunately, although they got a few strange looks, nobody looked too closely and they made it to their hiding place without incident. After making sure both were well hidden, they sat quietly for a few minutes so that any centurions that had seen them would be gone.

"Ok, it's been a while since we got here. I say we pick out a few victims." Dart suggested in a whisper. He carefully looked through the leaves and spotted a group of three centurions getting closer to the hidden angels.

"Bingo" he said, pointing them out to Pit. Pit grinned. Both got ready, and when the centurions were right next to the boys, they sounded loud blasts at the same time. All three centurions dropped to the ground like stones.

"We're under attack!"

"Quick, somebody needs to go warn the captain and Lady Palutena!"

The centurions babbled ineffectively at each other until they heard badly muffled laughter from the other side of the shrubs. They all looked confusedly at each other, having concluded that they weren't under attack, and one stuck his head through the leaves and discovered the twins laughing at them.

"Captain Pit? Dart? What are you two doing here?" The other two centurions confusedly repeated the names.

"Never mind us. We're having a little fun" said Dart.

"Yeah, you don't have to worry. Skyworld isn't under attack" reassured Pit.

The centurion paused, something clearly going through his head.

"Oh sweet Palutena. They've teamed up to harass us instead of just bothering each other. I knew this day would come."

Moans of dismay came from his two companions. Hysterical laughter came from the two angels.

"We've got to go warn everyone." he concluded.

"No! No, don't tell anyone!" Pit yelped.

"Yeah, we've hardly gotten started. You'll ruin our fun." Dart insisted.

"Ok, fine. I'm keeping my eye on you though."

The centurion made the 'I'm watching you' hand gesture and slowly backed away from them. The three continued on their way.

"Well, we gotta wait again." said Pit. An awkward silence fell. After several seconds, Pit tried to break it.

"Nice weather we're having."

Dart looked incredulously at Pit, then smacked him.

"Ow! What was that for?!"

"It is my responsibility, as your brother, to keep you from saying really stupid things. Like commenting on the weather. _Really_, Pit? Anyway, I take my responsibility very seriously." Dart responded solemnly.

"Well then, it is my responsibility to inform you that you have a huge ego." Pit said, also quite solemnly.

"Well, excuuuuse me, princess." Dart responded, rolling his eyes. Yes, I did just reference that 80's Legend of Zelda cartoon.

"Apparently it also falls under my responsibility to inform you that not only am I not royalty, I am also not a girl. I thought that you'd have figured that out since you're a clone of me. Maybe you're confused about your own gender?" suggested Pit innocently. Dart glared at him.

"We'll get back to this. After we scare the crap out of a few more centurions."

Pit smirked at his success in annoying Dart, then looked for more victims. He signaled when a group came nearby. The two kept at this for another half an hour, scaring random groups of centurions then laughing at them.

"Ok, ok. Here they come, in 3- 2-"

They blasted yet another pair of centurions, laughing when they, like most of the previous victims, reflexively dropped to the ground.

"Well now, it seems I've found the source of the trouble."

Pit and Dart yelped and turned around to find Palutena looking disapprovingly at the pair with her arms crossed.

"I've been told you two are causing trouble here for the centurions."

"Not so, Palutena." Dart protested in a very serious manner. Pit raised his eyebrows and turned to face him. Palutena settled into a more attentive pose, also looking forward to hearing him try to explain this away. It was time for Dart to come up with a really obvious bullshit excuse.

"You see, we noticed a bit of a fly problem out here."

Dart's companions each looked confused, mentally trying to tie a pest problem to sousaphone usage. After a moment he clarified.

"You see, we figured that a sudden blast of sound waves would kill the flies."

Palutena chuckled a bit.

"That sounds _incredibly_ plausible." she said, sarcastically. "I hate to break it to you, but those aren't flies, they're centurions."

Dart snorted, then pretended to look astonished at this revelation.

"But…not flies? _Centurions_?!"

He put down the instrument and approached a random centurion.

"My good sir," said the dark angel pompously, "can you tell me what species you are, by any chance?"

It was a testament to just how ridiculous the angels were on a daily basis that the centurion was not surprised in the least to have such a question put to him. When the teen angels were in the mood to screw around, resisting their immaturity was futile. He decided to just answer the question.

"I am a centurion."

"So, not a fly?" Dart pressed. The centurion gave him a WTF look.

"…No."

"See, me'n Pit-"

"What's with this 'me'n Pit' business?!" Pit cut in. "This was all your idea!"

"_You_ are the one who mentioned centurions- I mean, flies."

"It was hypothetical! A what-if! Not a suggestion!"

"It's not my fault you worded it in such a way as to make it sound like you wanted to. I mean, I was iffy about it but you sounded so insistent from my perspective that I decided to bend the rules for you, Pit."

"Dart, I am impressed by your sheer ability to twist anything around to sound like whatever you want it to."

"I am also impressed by my abilities." the dark angel replied very seriously.

"Well, it seems you've gotten a swelled head. Looks like I have to take you down a peg." Pit also set his sousaphone down and started cracking his knuckles threateningly.

"Is that how it's gonna be?" Dart flared his wings impressively and put up his fists, grinning.

"Fisticuffs, is it?" Pit put up his own fists and started hopping back and forth lightly.

"Oooh, you look so tough Pit."

"When I'm done with you-"

"What, I'm gonna have glitter in my hair and pink nails?" Dart suggested, snorting.

"Well, if you really want that…"

"Crap. I should really make sure you can't turn my taunts around." The dark angel said, scratching the back of his head.

"You also shouldn't give me ideas." Pit advised. "You have to sleep sometime."

"This isn't working out nearly as well as I intended."

"Anyway, when I'm done with you…" Pit went back to threatening his twin.

"Oh, right. So, finish the thought!" Dart encouraged.

"I don't know! I'm supposed to start the threat and let it trail off, insinuating that it's so horrible that I can't put words to it."

"Ok, so glitter in my hair and pink nails…"

Pit rolled his eyes.

"Dude, I'm standing here waving my fists at you. Not brandishing nail polish."

"Yeah, I notice you're not actually taking a swing. _Must_ be because you know I'll kick your ass if you start."

"You?! To quote you, _don't make me laugh_! I can beat you any day of the week, with both arms tied behind my back!" Pit boasted.

"Maybe if I was hog tied beforehand, or something."

"Can't help but notice you're not actually starting a fight, either. Must be 'cause you're scared of me."

"I am scared, for your safety. I'm afraid if I unleash the awesome, you wouldn't be able to handle it and you'd die instantly by spontaneously combusting. Like, if I so much as poke you, my awesomeness would overwhelm you and you'd instantly catch fire."

Dart poked Pit in the arm, and Pit collapsed, shrieking at the imaginary flames.

"Hey, Palutena. Want some angel wings for dinner? There's one for each of us." Dart shouted over Pit's yelling something about stop, drop and roll.

"Why did I want two of you again?" she asked, shaking her head at the scene. Dart gave her a toothy grin. This was a far cry from the suspicious, closed-off angel he had started out as. She looked at the rolling and laughing Pit, Dart with his mischievous grin, and wanted very much to gather both kids in her arms that second. She contented herself with smiling and ruffling the dark angel's hair and pulling Pit to his feet.

"Go put those away now. I better not see any dings or scratches on them."

"Aw, ruining our fun…" Dart complained, picking up a sousaphone and settling it on his shoulder.

"Fun? I thought you said you were doing pest control."

"Whoops. I mean, yeah! No more work!"

"Get out of here!" Palutena laughed, turning Dart towards the place where he'd gotten the sousaphone and lightly shoving him. He and Pit trotted off, keeping up a constant stream of taunts and jibes. As they got to the entrance, Pit noticed something stuck to the door. He didn't hear whatever Dart was saying to him and approached it.

He huffed.

"Oh, for the love of…"

"What is it?" his twin asked, pushing him away so he could see. As Dart took in the image on the paper, a grin formed on his face. He snorted. Then he chuckled. Dart tried to control himself, but before he knew it, he'd escalated into hysterical laughter.

It was a picture of Pit, saran wrapped to a pillar, looking furiously at the camera. If looks could kill, there'd be a pile of bodies in front of that door as unsuspecting passerby fell victim to Pit's photographed Glare of Death.

As Dart knelt down, still laughing uncontrollably, Pit frowned and tore down the picture, ripping it into pieces. He threw them into the breeze and folded his arms triumphantly.

Then a centurion, who'd been hiding and watching, brushed past Pit. In the blink of an eye, he had pinned up another copy of the photo and ran for his life, hooting with laughter.

Pit stood motionless, mouth open for several seconds in disbelief. Dart, in the meantime, had removed his sousaphone. He was rolling around, still laughing, with tears leaking out of his eyes.

Pit walked inside to drop off his sousaphone, then returned to find Dart still chuckling on the ground. He returned that sousaphone, too. By this time his twin had finished laughing and was just lying on the ground, a grin plastered on his face. Pit regarded him for a moment, smiling a bit. It made Pit happy to see his brother happy, even though the source was a prank on him. Then he picked Dart up by wrapping his arms around his chest and backing up to drag the other angel inside.

* * *

**Sorry about the wait. I honestly do take that long to write things. Sometimes I can get it out quickly, but more often I need time to develop the chapter. **


End file.
